Co-relationship between the thickness of the retinal nerve fiber layer and the axial length of the eyeball.

Muhammad Suhail Sarwar, Arooma Nazir, Kashaf Nazir, Samra Syed Gilani

Abstract


PURPOSE: To investigate the correlation between the average thickness of the retinal nerve fiber layer (aRNFL) and the axial length (AL) of the eyeball in normal individuals with optical coherence tomography (OCT) Optovue.

METHOD:  In the current study, 124 eyes (with or without refractive error) of 62 normal individuals (10 years or more) were recruited. The thickness of the RNFL was measured using the three-dimensional OCT Fourier domain, Optovue. The axial length was measured by A-scan (Quantel Medical).

RESULT: Bivariate correlation between aRNFL and AL was -0.64 with p < 0.001. So aRNFL has significant negative correlation with AL. aRNFL can be predicted with the linear formula aRNFL  = 1.62E2 - 2.34 * AL (r2Linear = 0.404). For every 1 mm increase in axial length the aRNFL decreases by 2.34 µm.

CONCLUSION: The thickness of the RNFL shows a negative correlation with the axial length of the eyeball. Physicians need to consider anatomical variations in the RNFL for better patient management.

KEYWORDS: Optical coherence tomography, Retinal nerve fiber layer


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