Uveitis as a Confounding Factor in Retinal Nerve Fiber Layer Analysis Using Optical Coherence Tomography

ABSTRACT

Purpose

To investigate the retinal nerve fiber layer thickness (RNFLT) in uveitic eyes and search for the associations with uveitis activity, etiology and location.

Methods

The files of 76 patients with uveitis and 76 controls were scanned. Associations of RNFLT were analyzed using generalized linear models.

Results

The RNFLT was significantly higher in patients with uveitis (p < .001). Active uveitis patients had a thicker RNFL than the controls and the patients with quiescent uveitis (p < .001). Anterior uveitis was associated with thinner RNFL in global and inferotemporal quadrant (p = .011 and 0.013, respectively). Thickening of RNFL was associated with posterior uveitis and Behçet’s disease in all quadrants (p < .001) and idiopathic uveitis in the superonasal and nasal quadrants (p = .001).

Conclusion

Active uveitis, as well as posterior uveitis and Behcet’s disease-associated uveitis, is a major confounding factor in RNFL analysis and therefore detection of glaucoma.

KEYWORDS:

• Uveitis
• glaucoma
• retinal nerve fiber layer
• optical coherence tomography

Declaration of interest

The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the paper

The orcid ids and the e-mail adresses of the authors

Hayati Yilmaz: 0000-0001-5051-5713/[email protected]

Mehmet Talay Koylu: 0000-0002-7283-3760/[email protected]

Bağım Ayçin Çakır: 0000-0002-3108-6295/[email protected]

Murat Küçükevcilioğlu: 0000-0001-7776-2183/[email protected]

A.Hakan DURUKAN: 0000-0001-6571-6155/[email protected]

Atilla Bayer: 0000-0002-0184-8033/[email protected]

Fatih Mehmet Mutlu: 0000-0002-7796-6511/[email protected]

Additional information

Funding

The authors declare that during this study, they received no financial and/or moral support that could negatively affect the decision-making process related to the study from any drug company with a direct link to the subject of the research or a manufacturer or commercial company that supplies and/or produces medical devices, equipment and supplies.