The relationship of central corneal thickness with the status of diabetic retinopathy

BACKGROUND: To compare central corneal thickness (CCT) values measured by three different devices: slit-scanning topography (SST), ultrasonic pachymetry (UP), and optical coherence tomography (OCT) in diabetic eyes and compare the CCT values in patients with and without diabetic retinopathy. METHODS: Ninety-six patients with diabetes mellitus were included in this prospective study and divided into two groups according to the presence of diabetic retinopathy, as Group I with retinopathy and Group II without. The CCT of 96 eyes was measured by three different devices; SST (Orbscan II), UP and OCT. The results of CCT measurements with three different devices were compared. Also, the intergroup differences in CCT measurements were evaluated. RESULTS: The CCT was statistically insignificantly different between the two groups. Although the three methods of CCT measurements correlated well with each other, SST showed significantly (p < 0,0001) higher CCT results compared to both UP and OCT. CONCLUSIONS: According to our results, neither the duration of DM nor the presence of diabetic retinopathy did have a significant effect on the CCT. The CCT values obtained with three devices were all in correlation. However, the results of SST were significantly higher compared to the other two. Our findings emphasize the value anterior segment OCT in CCT measurements, since it is a non-contact method and correlate very well with UP.