title: Evaluation of retinal nerve fiber layer thickness and choroidal thickness in pseudoexfoliative glaucoma and pseudoexfoliative syndrome.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To compare retinal nerve fiber layer thickness (RNFLT) and choroidal thickness (ChT) measurements in eyes with pseudoexfoliative (PEX) glaucoma, PEX syndrome and healthy control eyes.
  
  
  METHODS
  Eighteen patients with PEX glaucoma in one eye and PEX syndrome in the fellow eye were included. The right eyes of thirty-nine age- and sex-matched healthy subjects were included as control group. All participants underwent a detailed biomicroscopic and funduscopic examination. RNFLT and ChT measurements were performed with a commercially available spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT). ChT measurements were performed by using enhanced depth imaging (EDI) mode. Patients with PEX underwent diurnal IOP measurements with 4-hour intervals before inclusion in the study. RNFLT results included the average measurement and 6 quadrants (temporal, inferotemporal, inferonasal, nasal, superonasal and supero-temporal). ChT measurements were performed in the subfoveal region and around the fovea (500µm and 1500 µm nasal and temporal to the fovea), as well as around the optic disc (average peripapillary and eight quadrants in the peripapillary region (temporal, inferotemporal, inferior, inferonasal, nasal, superonasal, superior, supero-temporal)).
  
  
  RESULTS
  RNFLT in all quadrants and average thickness were significantly lower in PEX glaucoma eyes compared to PEX syndrome eyes and healthy control eyes (p<0.001 for both). RNFLT comparisons between PEX syndrome and healthy control eyes did not show a significant difference (p>0.05) except the inferotemporal quadrant. ChT measurements were similar between groups (p>0.05).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Thinning of the RNFL in association with unchanged ChT may mean that the presence of PEX material is a much more significant risk factor than choroidal changes in the progression of PEX syndrome to PEX glaucoma.
authors.affiliation: a Department of Ophthalmology , Gulhane Military Medical Academy , Ankara , Turkey.
authors.forename: Gokhan
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Ozge
authors.affiliation: b Department of Ophthalmology , Tatvan Military Hospital , Bitlis , Turkey.
authors.forename: Mehmet Talay
authors.initials: MT
authors.lastname: Koylu
authors.affiliation: a Department of Ophthalmology , Gulhane Military Medical Academy , Ankara , Turkey.
authors.forename: Tarkan
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Mumcuoglu
authors.affiliation: a Department of Ophthalmology , Gulhane Military Medical Academy , Ankara , Turkey.
authors.forename: Fatih Cakir
authors.initials: FC
authors.lastname: Gundogan
authors.affiliation: c Department of Ophthalmology , Van Military Hospital , Van , Turkey.
authors.forename: Cem
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Ozgonul
authors.affiliation: a Department of Ophthalmology , Gulhane Military Medical Academy , Ankara , Turkey.
authors.forename: Onder
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Ayyildiz
authors.affiliation: a Department of Ophthalmology , Gulhane Military Medical Academy , Ankara , Turkey.
authors.forename: Murat
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kucukevcilioglu
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D002829:Choroid / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D017889:Exfoliation Syndrome / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D005260:Female; D005901:Glaucoma / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009898:Optic Disk; D055351:Retinal Neurons / Q000473:pathology*; D041623:Tomography, Optical Coherence / Q000379:methods
keywords: Choroidal thickness; glaucoma; pseudoexfoliation; retinal nerve fiber layer thickness