Optical coherence tomography in Parkinson disease: changes in retinal nerve fiber layer and inner nuclear layer

• Grant number: 21/12076-8
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: March 01, 2022
• End date: February 28, 2023
• Field of knowledge: Health Sciences - Medicine - Surgery
• Principal Investigator: Ivan Maynart Tavares
• Grantee: Caike Costa Fernandes Diogo
• Host Institution: Escola Paulista de Medicina (EPM). Universidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP). Campus São Paulo. São Paulo , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Retinal degeneration of Parkinson's disease involves changes in dopamine, a neurotransmitter present in the amacrine cells, present in the inner nuclear layer, ganglion cells, receptive fields of bipolar cells, besides being able to modulate photoreceptor activities. Objectives: to compare the differences in the thickness of the following layers of the retina between normal individuals and patients with Parkinson's disease: nerve fibers of the peripapillary retina, ganglion cells layer of the macular retina, and internal nuclear layer. And to determine the applicability of the evaluation of the thickness of the layers of the retina as a diagnostic biomarker, and its usefulness for the follow-up of the disease, as well as for the aid in the differential diagnosis. Methods: a cross-sectional study in which 100 patients with Parkinson's disease and 30 normal volunteers will be evaluated, with analysis of the peripapillary retinal nerve fiber layer thickness, the ganglion cell layer of the macular retina, and the inner nuclear layer ate the macula, with the spectral domain (Spectralis OCT, Heidelberg, Germany) and swept-source (DRI OCT Triton, Topcon, Japan) optical coherence tomography. Statistical analysis: descriptive analysis, analysis of variance (ANOVA) to compare numerical variables between the study groups, chi-square, and Fisher's exact tests to verify the association between categorical variables, Pearson and Spearman correlation tests for associations between continuous variables; and curves from the Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) to describe the ability to differentiate patients with Parkinson's and normal individuals for each parameter of each device. Expected results: observation of thinning of the retinal layers evaluated, especially the inner nuclear layer and the ganglion cell complex in the macular region.(AU)