Optical coherence tomography angiography findings in high myopia

Abstract

Background Optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) is a sophisticated ophthalmic imaging technique, enables us to obtain images of blood vessels and blood flow at different levels of the retina and choroid without the use of contrast. Therefore, its potential application could be useful in the early detection of retinal vascular and macular pathologies and to recognize the pathogenesis of various ophthalmic diseases. Aim In this study, OCTA was utilized to detect the macular changes in eyes with high myopia. Patients and methods This cross-sectional study was carried out at the Department of Ophthalmology of Menoufia University Hospital according to the Helsinki Declaration and the Code of Ethics for Human Research of the World Medical Association and after obtaining approval of the institutional review board (IRB) 10/2022 OPHT 32. A total of 152 eyes of the study participants were included in this study and were divided into group A, which includes 76 eyes of highly myopic participants (>−6 D), and group B includes 76 eyes of nonmyopic (emmetropic) participants. Result In our study, there was a high statistically significant difference between the studied groups as regards axial length. In group A, it was 27.26±0.74 mm, while in group B, it was 23.14±0.73 mm (P<0.001). Regarding the comparison between studied cases according to the superficial and deep vascular density (SVD and DVD), there was a statistically significant difference between the studied groups. As regards overall SVD in group A, it was 46.48±4.78 while in group B, it was 51.78±2.8 (P<0.001). Meanwhile, the overall DVD in group A was 56.67±3.98, while in group B was 58.76±2.27 (P<0.001). Conclusion In the light of our study, OCTA shows significantly reduced SVD and DVD in eyes with high axial myopia, which could be an important aspect of understanding the natural history and etiology of pathologic myopia.