Mapping retinal and choroidal thickness in unilateral nongranulomatous acute anterior uveitis using three-dimensional 1060-nm optical coherence tomography

PURPOSE. To analyze retinal thickness (RT) and choroidal thickness (ChT) changes in patients with unilateral nongranulomatous acute anterior uveitis (AAU) using three-dimensional (3D) 1060-nm optical coherence tomography (OCT). METHODS. Retinal and choroidal thickness maps were statistically analyzed for 24 patients with newly diagnosed unilateral AAU before therapy. A total of 17 patients were followed until resolution of inflammatory activity (twice in the first week, then weekly). Resolution occurred in all subjects within 6 weeks after the initial diagnosis. After resolution, thickness maps were again generated. All patients were imaged by high-speed spectral-domain (SD) 3D 1060-nm OCT over a 10 × 10-mm field of view. The spatial distribution of retinal and choroidal thickness was mapped and analyzed using the Early Treatment Diabetic Retinopathy Study (ETDRS) grid. RESULTS. The choroid was significantly thicker in eyes affected by AAU than in fellow eyes before therapy with a mean thickness difference of 37 ± 11.44 µm (mean ± SD, Bonferroni correction, α = 0.0125). Following therapy, ChT significantly decreased with a mean change of 24 α 6.9 µm (mean ± SD, Bonferroni correction, α = 0.0125). There was no significant difference in RT between AAU and fellow eyes before therapy or in AAU eyes before and after therapy. CONCLUSIONS. Eyes affected by AAU demonstrate an increase in ChT before and a subsequent decrease after therapy while retinal thickness seems unaltered by disease and therapy. ChT might be a useful biomarker in monitoring posterior involvement and response to therapy in patients with AAU.