Ocular haemodynamics in children with vitamin D deficiency
Eye (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41433-024-03528-w PDF behind a paywall
Bengi Ece Kurtul, Cansu Sipal & Cigdem El
Background
To evaluate the retinal and optic nerve head microvasculature in children with vitamin D deficiency using optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA).
Methods
This prospective, cross-sectional study included 74 eyes of 37 children with vitamin D deficiency (Group I) and 64 eyes of 32 healthy children (Group II). All participants underwent OCTA examinations. Foveal retinal thickness (FRT), peripapillary retinal nerve fibre layer (RNFL) thickness, vessel density (VD) in different sections of the retina, and optic disc were analysed and compared between the groups.
Results
The mean ages, gender, mean intraocular pressures, and central corneal thickness levels were similar between the groups. The mean vitamin D levels measured from the venous blood samples of the participants were 11.42 ± 4.94 ng/mL in Group I and 26.03 ± 11.08 ng/mL in Group II, and the difference between these values was statistically significant (P < 0.001). There was no significant difference regarding optic disc capillary densities between the groups.
However, compared with the Group II, Group I showed significantly higher values of FRT, and lower values of superficial whole, parafoveal and perifoveal VD (287.58 ± 12.43 mm vs 258.21 ± 22.68, P < 0.001, 50.85 ± 2.15% vs 51.77 ± 2.30%, P = 0.01, 54.05 ± 2.83% vs 55.18 ± 2.40%, P = 0.01, 51.27 ± 2.21% vs 52.11 ± 2.27%, P = 0.03, respectively). The vitamin D levels showed significantly negative correlation with FRT values in Group I (r = −0.439, P = 0.001).
Conclusions
Vitamin D deficiency seems to be associated with higher values of FRT and decreased levels of superficial VD. Retinal microvascular architecture may be affected in paediatric subjects who have vitamin D deficiency.
What does a thicker foveal retinal thickness imply: Asked Perplexity AI - Dec 2024
A thicker foveal retinal thickness can imply several important factors related to eye health and vision:
Myopia Association
Increased foveal thickness is associated with higher degrees of myopia. As myopia (nearsightedness) increases, the thickness of the fovea tends to increase 1 2
This relationship suggests that foveal thickening may be a structural change that occurs as the eye elongates in myopic individuals.
Macular Edema
A significantly thickened fovea can be indicative of macular edema, particularly in diabetic patients. Foveal thickness exceeding 180 μm measured by Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) may be useful for the early detection of macular thickening in diabetic eyes 3
This threshold can serve as an indicator for closer patient monitoring.
Normal Variation vs. Pathology
It's important to note that there is a range of normal foveal thickness in healthy eyes. Studies using OCT have found that:
- The average foveal thickness in healthy eyes is approximately 212 ± 20 μm
- The central foveal thickness is around 182 ± 23 μm
Foveal thickness exceeding 252 μm may be considered suspicious for macular thickening, while values below 172 μm might suggest macular thinning 4
Visual Acuity Correlation
Foveal thickness has been shown to correlate with visual acuity. In some studies, greater fluctuations in retinal thickness predicted lower final visual acuity and reduced visual acuity gains 5
This suggests that maintaining stable foveal thickness may be important for preserving visual function.
Clinical Implications
Understanding foveal thickness is crucial for:
- Diagnosing and monitoring retinal diseases
- Assessing the efficacy of treatments, particularly anti-VEGF therapies for conditions like age-related macular degeneration
- Predicting visual outcomes in various retinal pathologies
In clinical practice, changes in foveal thickness are often used alongside other OCT parameters to guide treatment decisions and evaluate disease progression or improvement.
VitaminDWiki – Myopia epidemic and Vitamin D - many studies contains
- Myopia and many other vision problems are associated with low Vitamin D.
- More Myopia if less sun exposure
- More Myopia if obese (obese have lower levels of Vitamin D).
- One study found all children with Myopia had < 50ng/mL of Vitamin D.
- Suspect that Vitamin D will be proven to prevent Myopia.
- Suspect that Vitamin D plus eye exercise will be proven to treat Myopia.
VitaminDWiki – Vision category contains:
- 12% larger pupils in children who are Vitamin D deficient – Feb 2024 parasympathetic nervous system?
- Myopia, AMD, Dry Eye, and Diabetic Retinopathy are all associated with low Vitamin D - April 2023
- An ocular disease can be associated with low vitamin D and 1 of 5 poor vitamin D genes – June 2022
- Eye vitamin D may not be associated with blood VitD, but is associated with CYP27B1 and CYP24A1 – Nov 2019
- Vitamin D treats and prevents a variety of eye problems (need 70 ng) – June 2018
- Vitamin D and Myopia, AMD, Diabetic Retinopathy, Uveitis, Glaucoma, VDR etc. – May 2015
- Tears often have 25 % higher levels of vitamin D than does blood
Vision problems having many studies on VitaminDWiki
- Uveitis (inflamed eye) and Vitamin D - many studies
- Age-Related Macular Degeneration and Vitamin D - many studies
- Cataracts and Vitamin D - many studies
- Diabetic Retinopathy associated with low Vitamin D - many studies
- 7+ studies of Glaucoma and Vitamin D
- Dry Eyes treated by Omega-3 and Vitamin D – many studies
- 21+ studies of Myopia and Vitamin D
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