Subfoveal choroidal thickness and cataract: the Beijing Eye Study 2011.

Purpose: This study examined subfoveal choroidal thickness (SFCT) in eyes with cataracts.

Methods: The population-based Beijing Eye Study 2011 included 3468 individuals with a mean age of 64.6 ± 9.8 years (range, 50-93 years of age). Enhanced depth imaging spectral domain optical coherence tomography was applied for measurement of SFCT. Using lens photographs, we graded cataracts by the Age-Related Eye Disease Study system.

Results: Assessments of SFCT and cataract were available for 2548 subjects. After adjusting for age, axial length, sex, anterior chamber depth, and lens thickness, we found that SFCT was not significantly associated with presence of nuclear cataract (P = 0.41). Conversely, the degree of nuclear cataract (P = 0.73) was not significantly associated with SFCT after adjusting for age and sex. In contrast, thicker SFCT was significantly associated with lower degree of posterior subcapsular cataract (P = 0.027; standardized regression coefficient β: -0.04; regression coefficient B: -127; 95% confidence interval [CI]: -240 to -15) or with lower degree of cortical cataract (P = 0.028; β:-0.06; B: -51.5; 95% CI: -97.3 to -5.59) after adjusting for younger age, shorter axial length, and deeper anterior chamber. Conversely, the degree of posterior subcapsular cataract (P = 0.027; β:-0.06) or the degree of cortical cataract (P = 0.01; β: -2.55) was associated with thinner SFCT in multivariate analysis. Correspondingly in binary regression analysis, presence of subcapsular cataract was associated with older age (P < 0.001; odds ratio (OR): 1.11; 95% CI: 1.09-1.14) and thinner SFCT (P = 0.006; OR: 0.997; 95% CI: 0.995-0.999).

Conclusions: Although nuclear cataract was not significantly associated with an abnormal SFCT, the association between thin SFCT and subcapsular cataract or cortical cataract may have clinical importance, because thin SFCT is associated with low vision.