Analysis of choroidal thickness in eyes treated with focal laser photocoagulation using SD-OCT

Objective: To analyze the effect of focal laser photocoagulation on choroidal thickness in patients with diabetic macular edema (DME), using spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT). Design: Retrospective review. Participants: Twenty-two eyes of 22 patients diagnosed with DME and treated with focal laser photocoagulation (treatment group) and 19 fellow treatment-naive eyes (control group) who underwent high-definition 1-line raster scanning using the Cirrus SD-OCT at the New England Eye Center, Tufts Medical Center (Boston, Mass.) between November 2009 and April 2012. Methods: The SD-OCT images were analyzed for the measurement of choroidal thickness by 2 independent observers experienced in analyzing OCT images, before treatment and at 3 months after focal laser photocoagulation in the treatment group, and at baseline (when the fellow eye in the treatment group was treated) and at 3-month follow-up in the control group. Results: There was no significant difference in the mean choroidal thickness in the treatment and control groups (n = 22, p = 0.93 and n = 19, p = 0.1, respectively) at 3-month follow-up. There was no significant association of the number of focal laser treatments with the mean choroidal thickness (n = 41, r = -0.31, p = 0.68). Conclusions: Focal laser photocoagulation does not appear to alter choroidal thickness in eyes with DME in the short term, as assessed using SD-OCT. Long-term follow-up of eyes with DME and other retinal diseases treated with laser photocoagulation may provide further insight into the effects of this treatment modality on the choroid.