Author: Erman Bozali (Turkey)
Co-authors: Duygu Yalinbas Yeter
Purpose
Schizophrenia is a neurodegenerative disease of the brain. In literature, there are studies suggesting reduced retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) thickness and macular thickness. The aim of this study is to evaluate the outer retinal layer thickness (ORL) and retinal nerve fiber layer changes in patients with schizophrenia and to compare them with the healthy controls.
Setting/Venue
Sivas Cumhuriyet University School of Medicine, Department of Ophthalmology, Sivas, TURKEY
Methods
This study consisted of 114 eyes of 57 patients diagnosed with schizophrenia and 114 eyes of 57 healthy controls. Demographic data of the patients were evaluated. Central foveal thickness (CFT), central subfield thickness (CST) and, ORL thickness were measured in both groups via the images obtained by spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (OCT). RNFL was also assessed in four quadrants (inferior, superior, temporal, nasal). CST measurements were presented as the average thickness of the macula in the central 1 mm area on the Early Treatment Diabetic Retinopathy Study (ETDRS) grid. The ORL thickness was defined as the distance between external limiting membrane and retinal pigment epithelium at the center of the foveal pit.
Results
The mean age of 57 patients was 37,2±9,9 of whom 34 (59,6%) were male; 23 (40,4%) were female. No statistically significant difference was found between groups in terms of age and gender (p=0.8 for age, p=0.9 for gender). The mean CST in two groups was 255,5±25,8 and 262,2±17,6 µm respectively (p=0,1). ORL thickness was 98,2±14,6 in the patient group and 103,7±6,2 µm in the control group. The difference between groups regarding ORL thickness was statistically significant (p=0,011). Also, RNFL analysis demonstrated a significant thinning in the inferior and superior quadrants compared to healthy controls (p<0,001 and p=0,017 respectively).
Conlusions
The retina consists of neuronal cells therefore neurodegenerative disorders may affect retinal structures. Our findings reveal noteworthy retinal layer changes. Consequently, OCT may help facilitate the clinical diagnosis of schizophrenia and substantially may be considered as a potential early biomarker for monitoring the progressive neurodegeneration in schizophrenia.
Financial Disclosure
None
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