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.