An investigation on choroidal and retinal thickness alterations in Posner-Schlossman syndrome patients

Abstract

Background We aimed to compare choroidal thickness (ChT) and retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) thickness in the affected and contralateral eyes of patients with Posner-Schlossman Syndrome (PSS) during acute, remission, and intermittent phases. Methods This prospective observational study included 18 patients(36 eyes) diagnosed with PSS. These patients underwent a comprehensive ophthalmologic evaluation including slit lamp examination, visual acuity testing, intraocular pressure (IOP) measurement, and funduscopic examination, and assessment of RNFL thickness, macular thickness, and macular ChT. Patient data collected included gender, age, number of keratic precipitates (KPs), and number of episodes. Optical coherence tomography (OCT) was used to measure RNFL thickness, macular thickness, and macular ChT in both eyes during the acute, remission, and intermittent phases. The affected eye was compared with the unaffected eye at each phase. Results In affected eyes, macular ChT was lower in the acute phase compared to the remission phase at N1500, N1000, N500, and subfoveal locations (all p < 0.05).The central macular recess ChT was also significantly thinner in the acute phase compared to the intermittent and remission phases. Age significantly correlated with ChT in the central recess ( p = .024). Macular thickness was thinner during the acute phase in the affected eye ( p = .048). The RNFL in the affected eye was thinner in the intermittent phase than in the acute phase at the inferior-temporal ( p = .011) and global sectors ( p = .044). During the acute phase, RNFL in the affected eye was thinner at the superior-nasal ( p = .049), inferior-temporal ( p = .003), and global ( p = .041) sectors compared to the unaffected eye. In the intermittent phase, the affected eye’s RNFL was thinner at the superior-nasal, inferior-temporal, inferior-nasal, and global sectors compared to the unaffected eye (all p < 0.05), while no difference was observed in both eyes at the nasal, superior-temporal, and temporal sectors. The number of episodes and age were significantly associated with RNFL thickness ( p < .05). Conclusion This study demonstrated that in eyes affected by PSS, RNFL, macular ChT, and macular thickness thinned during the acute phase. The number of episodes and age are significant factors in the development of PSS.