Choroidal thickness in Australian Indigenous children

Purpose: Australian Indigenous children have been reported to have a low myopia prevalence (Methods: Choroidal thickness was measured across the macular region using enhanced depth imaging spectral domain OCT, in 135 children (aged 4-12, mean age 8.9 ± 2.1 years) enrolled in an elementary school in rural Queensland, Australia. Forty five percent of the children identified as Indigenous Australians.Results: The subfoveal choroid was significantly thicker in Indigenous children (mean 357 ± 74 µm), compared to non-Indigenous children (334 ± 69 µm) (p = 0.046). Choroidal thickness was significantly positively associated with age (β = +8.7, p = 0.003), and negatively associated with axial length (β = -30.1, p Conclusions: In Australian Indigenous children the choroid is significantly thicker than in non-Indigenous children living in the same rural region. We hypothesise that the altered choroidal thickness distribution (thickness and meridional differences) may act to protect against myopia development in this population