Subclinical choroidal involvement in Systemic Lupus Erythematosus

• Type: Article in International Scientific Journal
• Date: 2024

Authors

Ferreira, A (Author) FMUP; Viveiros, L (Author) Other; Faria, R (Author) Other; Abreu, AC (Author) Other; Santos, D (Author) Other; Furtado, MJ (Author) Other; Lume, M (Author) Other; Andrade, JP (Author) Other; Menéres, P (Author) Other

Journal

The Journal is awaiting validation by the Administrative Services.

Title: GRAEFES ARCHIVE FOR CLINICAL AND EXPERIMENTAL OPHTHALMOLOGY

ISSN: 0721-832X

Indexing

ISI Web of Knowledge - 0 Citations

Scopus - 0 Citations

Other information

Authenticus ID: P-010-HRS

DOI: 10.1007/s00417-024-06526-6

Abstract (EN): Purpose To assess the choroidal status of Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) patients using Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) and OCT-Angiography. Methods SLE patients with disease duration < 10 years, no disease activity and no ocular involvement were recruited and cross-sectionally evaluated. A demographically similar cohort of healthy subjects was used for comparison. The main outcome is choroidal vascularity index (CVI). As secondary outcomes, choriocapillaris parameters and choroidal thickness (CT) were evaluated. Results Forty eyes of 40 subjects (20 SLE patients and 20 healthy subjects) were studied with a mean +/- SD age of 36.7 +/- 9.9 years. In the SLE group, the mean +/- SD duration of disease was 7.35 +/- 2.21 years. Increased CVI was found in the SLE group (p = 0.022). Considering the choriocapillaris, SLE patients presented a lower number (p = 0.037) and a smaller total area (p = 0.041) of signal voids. No differences between groups were found in CT. For SLE patients, CT at subfoveal, temporal and inferior locations presented a negative moderate correlation with disease duration. A strong correlation between choriocapillaris parameters and age was demonstrated for both groups. Conclusions This study provides evidence of subclinical choroidal changes in adult SLE patients with inactive disease and no overt ocular manifestation. Increased CVI and fewer and smaller flow voids in choriocapillaris with normal CT suggest increased choroidal vascularity in SLE.

Language: English

Type (Professor's evaluation): Scientific

No. of pages: 9