title: CHOROIDAL THICKNESS IN DIABETIC PATIENTS WITHOUT DIABETIC RETINOPATHY.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To compare choroidal thickness (CT) between diabetic patients without diabetic retinopathy and a nondiabetic group. To explore how CT relates to disease duration, mean arterial pressure, glycemia, glycosylated hemoglobin, intraocular pressure, and ocular pulse amplitude.
  
  
  METHODS
  Choroidal thickness was assessed using a spectral-domain optical coherence tomography and enhanced depth mode at 13 locations (subfoveal and 3 measurements 500 μm apart in 4 directions-nasal, temporal, superior, and inferior). Linear regression models were used.
  
  
  RESULTS
  One hundred seventy-five patients were recruited (125 diabetic patients without diabetic retinopathy and 50 nondiabetic patients). In diabetic patients, although without statistical significance, CT showed a trend to be thicker in all locations (6.16-24.27 μm). Choroidal thickness was negatively associated with age (P < 0.001) in both groups, but only in the diabetic group, it was positively associated to ocular pulse amplitude (with a mean increase between 8.5 μm and 11.6 μm for each millimeter of mercury increase in ocular pulse amplitude). Diabetic patients' CT seems to stabilize after 150 months of diabetes, increase with higher glycemia levels (>160 mg/dL) while showing no fluctuation with glycosylated hemoglobin and mean arterial pressure.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  There seems to be a thickening of the choroid in diabetic patients without diabetic retinopathy. Moreover, this tissue may be functionally different in diabetes, as the pattern of associations seems to differ between groups.
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, Central Lisbon Hospital Center, Lisbon, Portugal.|NOVA Medical School/Faculdade de Ciências Médicas, Lisbon, Portugal.
authors.forename: Joana
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Tavares Ferreira
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, Norrland University Hospital, Umeå, Sweden.|Department of Clinical Sciences-Ophthalmology, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden.
authors.forename: André
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Vicente
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, Central Lisbon Hospital Center, Lisbon, Portugal.
authors.forename: Rita
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Proença
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, Associação Médica Olhar bem, Lisbon Portugal.|CEris-ICIST, Instituto Superior Tecnico, Lisbon University, Lisbon, Portugal.
authors.forename: Bruno O
authors.initials: BO
authors.lastname: Santos
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, Central Lisbon Hospital Center, Lisbon, Portugal.|NOVA Medical School/Faculdade de Ciências Médicas, Lisbon, Portugal.
authors.forename: João P
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Cunha
authors.affiliation: Epidemiology and Statistics Unit, Research Centre, Central Lisbon Hospital Center, Lisbon, Portugal.
authors.forename: Marta
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Alves
authors.affiliation: NOVA Medical School/Faculdade de Ciências Médicas, Lisbon, Portugal.|Epidemiology and Statistics Unit, Research Centre, Central Lisbon Hospital Center, Lisbon, Portugal.|CEAUL (Center of Statistics and Applications), Lisbon University, Lisbon, Portugal.
authors.forename: Ana L
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: Papoila
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, Northern Lisbon Hospital Center, Lisbon, Portugal.|Visual Sciences Study Center, Faculty of Medicine, Lisbon University, Lisbon, Portugal.
authors.forename: Luís
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Abegão Pinto
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001794:Blood Pressure / Q000502:physiology; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D002829:Choroid / Q000473:pathology*; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003924:Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 / Q000473:pathology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007429:Intraocular Pressure / Q000502:physiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012044:Regression Analysis; D041623:Tomography, Optical Coherence / Q000379:methods; D014792:Visual Acuity / Q000502:physiology