Abstract:

Objective To measure the association of macular thickness with sex, age and refractive status in middle-aged and elderly population of Handan Eye Study (Yongnian County in Hebei Province). Design Population-based cross-sectional study. Participants 5394 participants in Handan Eye Study 2012-2013 with the mean age of 57.8±11.2 years. Methods A detailed interview, general examinations and ophthalmic examinations were performed. Using optical coherence tomography (OCT) to measure the macular thickness, and separate to nine sectors of the ETDRS grid. Main Outcome Measures Macular thickness. Results 4735(87.8%) of 5394 participants in macular thickness measurements were available. The mean macular thickness of central foveal subfield, average pericentral ring and the average peripheral ring was 237.73±22.67 μm, 310.26±18.47 μm, and 278.36±14.48 μm, respectively. There was significant difference in macular thickness between different genders (P<0.001). The mean macular thicknesses of central foveal subfield, average pericentral ring and the average peripheral ring in the male were 242.40±22.32 μm, 314.82±18.39 μm, and 280.37±14.33 μm, and the mean  macular thicknesses of central foveal subfield, average pericentral ring and the average peripheral ring in the female were 234.03±18.47 μm, 306.64±17.72 μm, and 276.76±14.40 μm, the thinner overall average macular thickness was associated with female sex. In the fovea, there was a non-monotonic curved relationship between macular thickness and age in both sexes with a maximum at about 60 years (P<0.001). The pericentral ring and the peripheral ring in different age groups were significantly different (P<0.001). These thickness gradually decreased with age. Macular thickness was significantly associated with refraction, where mean change in retinal thickness per 1.00 D increase in spherical equivalent refraction (SER) was -0.6±0.2 μm in the fovea, 0.2±0.1 μm in the pericentral ring and 0.5±0.1 μm in the peripheral ring. Conclusion In Yongnian adult population, macular thickness was declined with age in both women and men in all macular regions, and the rate of change in macular thickness varied at different ages. Women had thinner macular than men. Higher SER was associated with thinner retina in central foveal subfield and thicker retina in the pericentral and the peripheral ring in both women and men.

Key words: macular thickness, population-based epidemiological survey, optical coherence tomography