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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Ophthalmol.
Sec. Retina
Volume 4 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fopht.2024.1540410
This article is part of the Research Topic Ischemic retinopathy: underlying pathologic mechanisms and identifying therapeutic molecular targets View all articles

Axial Length to Corneal Curvature Radius Ratio is Negatively Correlated with Choroidal Blood Flow in Myopic Children

Provisionally accepted
YURONG YE YURONG YE 1Zizhong Hu Zizhong Hu 2Yeyu Shen Yeyu Shen 1*Songtao Yuan Songtao Yuan 2*Na Su Na Su 2
  • 1 BenQ Medical Center, Nanjing, Jiangsu Province, China
  • 2 The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, nanjing, China

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    1) BACKGROUND: The pathophysiologic mechanisms underlying early-onset myopia remain unclear; in this study, we investigate the pathogenesis by examining the interrelationships between axial length to corneal curvature radius ratio (AL/CR) and choroidal blood flow. (2) METHODS: This cross-sectional study included 202 eyes from myopic children, categorized into 141 eyes with mild myopia, 47 eyes with moderate myopia, and 14 eyes with high myopia. Optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) was used to measure choroidal blood flow perfusion within a 6 mm × 6 mm area of the macular region, divided into nine subareas based on ETDRS partitioning: macular fovea, nasal side 1, superior 1, temporal side 1, inferior 1, nasal side 2, superior 2, temporal side 2, and inferior 2. Data on corneal curvature and ocular axial length were collected to calculate the AL/CR, with equivalent spherical lens power, gender, and age gathered for group comparisons,and the correlation between AL/CR and choroidal blood flow perfusion volume was analyzed. (3) RESULTS: AL/CR was significantly negatively correlated with choroidal blood flow perfusion ( P＜0.001 ). Linear regression and mediation analyses indicated that for each unit increase in choroidal blood perfusion volume in nasal region 1, AL/CR decreased by an average of 0.421 units. This relationship is mediated by several factors, with axial length serving as a key mediator. (4) CONCLUSION: AL/CR correlates with choroidal blood flow perfusion, indicating a link between refractive biological parameters and ocular blood circulation. Myopia is an ischemic eye condition that warrants attention to fundus microcirculation changes in myopic children.

    Keywords: OCTA, axial length to corneal curvature radius ratio (AL/CR), Choroidal blood flow, Myopia, Children, Axial length (AL)

    Received: 05 Dec 2024; Accepted: 11 Dec 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 YE, Hu, Shen, Yuan and Su. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence:
    Yeyu Shen, BenQ Medical Center, Nanjing, Jiangsu Province, China
    Songtao Yuan, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, nanjing, China

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