Impact of adherence to gluten-free diet in paediatric celiac patients on optical coherence tomography findings: Ocular imaging based study

•Adhering to a gluten-free diet does not make any difference in choroidal thickness, ganglion cell complex thickness, retinal nerve fiber layer thickness and foveal thickness in pediatric celiac patients.•Mean serum anti-tTG antibody levels are significantly higher in the non-dieting group compared to the dieting group.•Prospective studies with follow-up periods including measurements of the same patients at the time of diagnosis and forming subgroups from this first group of celiac patients who comply with the gluten-free diet and those who do not and finally comparison of these patients among themselves and with the control group would give the most accurate and rational results. This study aims to measure choroidal thickness, retinal nerve fiber layer thickness, GCC thickness, and foveal thickness by optical coherence tomography and to investigate whether there is a difference between celiac patients who adhere to the gluten-free diet and who do not. A total of 68 eyes of 34 pediatric patients diagnosed with celiac disease were included in the study. Celiac patients were divided into two groups those who adhere to the gluten-free diet and those who do not. Fourteen patients who adhere to the gluten-free diet and 20 patients who do not adhere to the gluten-free diet were included in the study. Choroidal thickness, GCC, RNFL, and foveal thickness of all subjects were measured and recorded using an optical coherence tomography device. The mean choroidal thickness of the dieting and non-diet groups was 249.05 ± 25.60 and 244.18 ± 33.50 µm, respectively. The mean GCC thickness of the dieting and non-diet groups was 96.56 ± 6.26 and 93.83 ± 5.62 µm, respectively. The mean RNFL thickness of the dieting and non-diet groups was 108.83 ± 9.97 and 103.20 ± 9.74 µm, respectively. The mean foveal thickness of the dieting and non-diet groups was 259.25 ± 33.60 and 261.92 ± 32.94 µm, respectively. There was not a statistically significant difference between the dieting group and the non-diet group in terms of choroidal, GCC, RNFL and foveal thicknesses (p = 0.635, p = 0.207, p = 0.117, p = 0.820, respectively). In conclusion, the present study states that adhering to a gluten-free diet does not make any difference in choroidal, GCC, RNFL, and foveal thicknesses in pediatric celiac patients.