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Evaluation of the retinal nerve fiber layer thickness and the choroidal thickness in generalized vitiligo patients
  • Müslüm Toptan,
  • Mustafa Aksoy
Müslüm Toptan
Harran Universitesi

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Mustafa Aksoy
Harran Universitesi
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Abstract

Aim: The retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) thickness and the choroidal thickness is compared to healthy volunteers in vitiligo patients. Material and method: The study included the right eyes of 60 healthy individuals and 60 generalized vitiligo patients. Following routine ophthalmological examination, the RNFL thickness and the choroidal thickness were analyzed with spectral domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT). Results: It was determined that the mean macular choroidal thickness decreased significantly in vitiligo patients, while the RNFL thickness did not change (p<0.05). Conclusion: As the fact that the RNFL thickness does not change despite the significantly reduced choroidal thickness in vitiligo patients may indicate that the melanin cells that are dense in the choroid are affected, the non-invasive, simple and rapid measurement of the choroidal thickness with OCT can help in determining the damage in vitiligo patients. Keywords: Vitiligo, choroid, nerve fibers, optical coherence tomography. 1. What is already known about this topic? Melanocytes are found in uveal tissues such as the eyelash, retinal pigment epithelium, choroid, ciliary body, and iris. Melanin in these tissues can disappear when destruction occurs in cutaneous melanocytes in vitiligo patients. As a result, some studies reported hypopigmented spots on the iris and retina, atrophic changes in the peripapillary area, degeneration in the retinal pigment epithelium and chorioretinal areas. Melanin, produced in melanocytes in the choroidal layer and stored in melanosomes, has a crucial role in protecting and absorbing light from intraocular reflection. 2. What does this article add? Although the visual acuity of the patients with vitiligo is at the same level as the control group, we found that the average macular choroid thickness was thinner. We found no significant changes in the choroidal thickness in patients with periocular attitude. We found a negative correlation between the choroidal thickness and the duration of the disease.