A study of retinal changes in women with polycystic ovarian syndrome

PURPOSE: To compare the optical coherence tomography (OCT)-based retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) and ganglion cell layer (GCL) thickness at the posterior pole, and total macular thickness of women with the polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) versus healthy reproductive age group females. METHODS: The study included 110 eyes of 55 diagnosed cases of PCOS (study group) and 110 eyes of 55 healthy reproductive age group (15–49 years) females (control group). All patients underwent a detailed ophthalmological evaluation followed by an OCT to measure their retinal thicknesses. The body mass index (BMI) of patients was noted and compared with the retinal thickness. Also, the lipid profile and serum testosterone levels of PCOS patients were recorded. RESULTS: The retinal thicknesses in the two study were similar and there was no statistically significant difference. However, on stratification with BMI, it was seen that in patients with BMI>30 kg/m(2), the superior Retinal Nerve Fibre Layer (RNFL) was significantly thicker in the PCOS group as compared with the control group (P = 0.0006). The mean serum testosterone level in patients with PCOS was 141.3 ± 23.2. Also, 65.45% of patients had a serum testosterone level of more than 70 ng/dL. The mean HDL cholesterol in patients with PCOS was 38.1 ± 15.6. The mean LDL cholesterol in PCOS patients was 98.4 ± 21.7, and the mean total cholesterol in PCOS patients was 153.6 ± 27.3. CONCLUSION: Androgens have a trophic action on nerves, which could explain the increased RNFL thickness in these patients.