Macular retinal layer thickness in childhood.

PURPOSE

To examine macular retinal thickness and retinal layer thickness with spectral domain optical coherence tomography in a population of children with normal ocular health and minimal refractive errors.

METHODS

High-resolution macular optical coherence tomography scans from 196 children aged 4 years to 12 years (mean age: 8 ± 2 years), were analyzed to determine total retinal thickness and thickness of 6 different retinal layers across the central 5 mm of the posterior pole. Automated segmentation with manual correction was used to derive retinal thickness values.

RESULTS

The mean total retinal thickness in the central 1-mm foveal zone was 255 ± 16 μm, and this increased significantly with age (mean increase of 1.8 μm per year) in childhood (P < 0.001). Age-related increases in thickness of some retinal layers were also observed, with changes of the highest statistical significance found in the outer retinal layers in the central foveal region (P < 0.01). Significant topographical variations in thickness of each of the retinal layers were also observed (P < 0.001).

CONCLUSION

Small magnitude, statistically significant increases in total retinal thickness and retinal layer thickness occur from early childhood to adolescence. The most prominent changes seem to occur in the outer retinal layers of the central fovea.