Choroidal thickness alterations in diabetic nephropathy patients with early or no diabetic retinopathy.

Purpose: To assess changes in choroidal thickness (CT) in diabetes patients with and without diabetic nephropathy using enhanced depth imaging spectral domain optical coherence tomography (EDI-OCT).

Methods: Thirty-five type 2 diabetes patients with a diagnosis of diabetic nephropathy (DNP) in nephrology department and 35 type 2 diabetes patients without nephropathy (non-DNP) were included in our prospective study consecutively. The control group comprised 34 healthy individuals. CT measurements were recorded under the fovea and at 1500 µm from the foveal center in the nasal and temporal sides. The study parameters also included age, refractive error, axial length, intraocular pressure, HbA1c, glomerular filtration rate and proteinuria amount.

Results: The subfoveal, temporal and nasal choroidal thickness was noted to be thinner in patients with DNP compared with non-DNP and normal subjects (p < 0.05). However, CT measurements did not show any difference between the healthy and non-DNP group.

Conclusion: CT decreases significantly in diabetic patients when diabetic nephropathy accompanies diabetes mellitus.