Macular Morphology in Patients with Retinopathy of Prematurity

Purpose: To investigate macular morphology by spectral domain optical coherence tomography (SDOCT) in children with history of the retinopathy of prematurity (ROP). Materials and methods: In this cross-sectional study we included 35 eyes of 18 patients, aged 4 to 8 years, with history of ROP. Twenty-one eyes had received treatment for type 1 pre-threshold ROP. The others showed spontaneous regression of the disease. A 7 × 7-mm retinal area was sampled using a 3-dimensional scanning protocol with high-resolution spectral domain optical coherence tomography (SOCT Copernicus REVO). The central foveal thickness, mean macular thickness, macular volume and foveal depression were measured. The macular anatomy and the foveal contour were examined. Results: The mean birth weight was 1338.29 ± 324.05 grams. Mean gestational age at birth was 29.37 ± 2.07 weeks. Twenty-one eyes were treated with laser or cryotherapy. All of them showed regression of the disease. The mean best corrected visual acuity was 20/28. The average central foveal thickness was 262.26 ± 37.39, with 68.57% of preterm > 240 μm and 22.86% > 220 μm. In all eyes, the foveal contour is abnormal. A foveal depression was absent in 25 eyes (71%). Conclusion: In the majority of children with a history of ROP, we found changes in macular morphology, including retention of inner retinal layers and absent foveal depression. In our study foveal hypoplasia was associated with good functional outcome.