Retinal choroidal and retinal nerve fiber layer thickness in former preterm and full-term infants aged 4 to 8 years

Purpose To compare the retinal thickness at the fovea center, peripapillary retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) thickness and choroidal thickness (CT) in former preterm and full-term infants. Methods A total of 121 healthy children aged 4–8 years were divided 4 groups: group 1; children born on time, group 2; preterm children without a history of retinopathy of prematurity (ROP), group 3; preterm children with a history of spontaneously regressed ROP and group 4; preterm children who underwent diode laser photocoagulation for ROP. The retinal thickness at the fovea, peripapillary RNFL thickness at global, superior, inferior, nasal and temporal quadrants and submacular CT at 7 different points were measured by using spectral-domain optical coherence tomography. Results The mean retinal thickness at the fovea center was statistically higher, whereas the mean RNFL thickness values in global, nasal, superior and inferior quadrants were statistically lower in group 4. No difference was found in the mean submacular CT value of any point between the groups. Conclusion Transpupillary diode laser photocoagulation treatment for ROP seems to cause an increase in macular thickness and a decrease in RNFL thickness.