WIDE-FIELD RETINAL AND CHOROIDAL THICKNESS IN HEALTHY CHINESE CHILDREN: Normative Ranges and Influencing Factors.

Abstract

To characterize the normative distribution of wide-field retinal and choroidal thickness in a large cohort of Chinese children aged 7 to 19 years and to evaluate the associations with age, sex, intraocular pressure(IOP), and refractive status. This cross-sectional study included 2032 healthy Chinese students (1,487 primary school students and 545 middle school students). Primary school students underwent comprehensive ocular examinations including IOP, axial length (AL), refractive status, corneal curvature, and wide-field optical coherence tomography (OCT); middle school students received basic examinations and OCT. Correlation analyses assessed relationships between retinal/choroidal thickness and ocular parameters. Longer AL was associated with higher IOP, lower vertical corneal curvature (K2), and greater myopia. Older age correlated with greater myopia, longer AL, and reduced K2. Men had longer AL; women had higher K2. The mean subfoveal retinal thickness was 267.69 ± 20.80 µ m, progressively decreasing toward the temporal periphery, up to 15 mm from the fovea. By contrast, the mean subfoveal choroidal thickness was 304.11 ± 65.61 µ m, with the thinnest region located nasally, near the optic nerve. Choroidal thickness decreased with age, AL, myopia severity, and lower K2. Retinal and choroidal thickness showed opposite spatial trends. Wide-field retinal and choroidal thickness exhibited distinct distribution patterns associated with age, myopia, and multiple ocular parameters in children, providing normative data to facilitate early detection, monitoring, and research of ocular development and pediatric eye diseases.