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Purpose: To assess the association between perinatal risk factors for retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) and central retinal structures of former preterm children seen on optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA). Methods: This prospective cohort study included 40 children with a history of preterm birth and 33 healthy full‐term children. We documented their birth weight, gestational age, other significant risk factors for ROP development and presence of ROP. Imaging was performed using swept‐source OCTA, and quantitative evaluation was performed. Analytic parameters included the area of foveal avascular zone (FAZ), foveal depth (FD), central subfoveal retinal thickness (CSFT) and capillary density index (CDI) of the deep and superficial capillary plexus. Results: Preterm children had significantly smaller FAZ, lower FD and higher CSFT compared to controls (all p < 0.001). Both groups exhibited no differences in total CDI at the superficial (p = 0.969) and deep capillary plexus (p = 0.370). The duration of mechanical ventilation correlated negatively with FAZ and FD but positively with CSFT. The duration of supplemental oxygen treatment correlated negatively with FD. The presence of intraventricular haemorrhage correlated negatively with FAZ and FD but positively with CSFT. Regression analysis found that the duration of mechanical ventilation and the presence of bronchopulmonary dysplasia were associated with lower FD (p = 0.002 and 0.01, respectively) and higher CSFT (p = 0.002 and 0.028, respectively). Conclusion: Central retinal anomalies were identified in former preterm children using OCTA. Macular changes were associated with several risk factors for ROP development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Evaluate choroidal structural changes in preterm children with and without retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) using image binarization technique on swept‐source optical coherence tomography (SS‐OCT) scans. Methods: Prospective case–control study. Forty‐one (79 eyes) children aged 5–15 years with a history of preterm birth and 33 (63 eyes) age‐matched full‐term children were recruited. Demographics including gestational age at birth, birth weight and history of ROP were documented. All subjects had undergone complete eye examinations, including best‐corrected visual acuity and SS‐OCT imaging. Subfoveal choroidal thickness (SFCT) was calculated, and images were binarized to obtain stromal and luminal areas (LA). The choroidal vascularity index (CVI) was derived from the proportion of LA to the total subfoveal choroidal area. Results: There were no significant differences in SFCT between the preterm children with (286.63 ± 83.98 μm) or without (306.59 ± 77.29 μm) ROP and the full‐term children (311.82 ± 42.87; p = 0.20 and 0.67, respectively). The CVI was significantly reduced in the preterm children with ROP (68.66 ± 3.24%; p = 0.005) compared with the CVI in the full‐term control group (71.37 ± 3.63%); however, the CVI in the preterm children without ROP (71.68 ± 3.09%; p = 0.93) was not significantly affected. Conclusion: The reduced CVI in preterm children with ROP may indicate compromised choroidal vascularity. The CVI was found to be a more sensitive OCT biomarker than the SFCT and may be helpful in evaluating associated choroidal structural changes in preterm children, especially those with a history of ROP. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]