Spectral Domain Optical Coherence Tomography Findings in Carotid Artery Disease.

OBJECTIVES

To evaluate the effect of carotid artery disease on retinal morphology by means of spectral domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT).

MATERIALS AND METHODS

We examined 23 eyes with internal carotid artery (ICA) stenosis and 24 age- and gender-matched healthy eyes as a control group in this prospective, case-control study. Compherensive ophthalmic examination and SD-OCT scan were performed to all the patients. The average RNFL and macular thicknesses (MT) in the nine macular ETDRS areas were the major OCT measurements for our study.

RESULTS

Although all of the average RNFL and MT measurements were lower in the ICA stenosis group, only the total MT and outer ETDRS area (temporal/superior/nasal/inferior outer macula) values were found to be significantly thinner compared to the control group (p=0.004, p=0.009, p<0.001, p=0.002, and p=0.001, respectively).

CONCLUSION

In addition to our knowledge about the effects of ICA stenosis on the retino-choroidal circulation, we found that OCT measurements may be beneficial in the early detection of ocular damage due to ICA stenosis.