Evaluation of Macular Vasculature in Patients with Schizophrenia Compared to Healthy Subjects

Purpose: the present study aims to evaluate the macular thickness and vasculature changes with a readily accessible method of optical coherence tomography angiography (oct-a) in patients with schizophrenia compared to healthy individuals.methods: the present cross-sectional study was conducted in 2019 at ibn-e-sina psychiatric educational hospital of mashhad. twenty-two cases of schizophrenia treated with risperidone and 22 age-matched healthy individuals participated in the study. the severity of the disease was assessed using the positive and negative syndrome scale (panss) test. all participants underwent complete ophthalmic examination and octa imaging.results: there was a statistically significant difference for fovea full-thickness (p=0.021) and parafovea full retinal thickness (p=0.029) between schizophrenic and healthy subjects. fovea full retinal thickness, parafovea full retinal thickness, fovea vessel density, and parafovea vessel density were significantly lower in markedly ill schizophrenia patients than the moderately ill subgroup (p=0.027, p=0.017, p=0.034, p=0.015).conclusion: in the present study, retinal neural and vascular tissues could be used as a research model in schizophrenia. foveal and parafoveal thickness was significantly lower in patients with schizophrenia than that of healthy subjects, but it does not necessarily mean that there is a degenerative process in the pathogenesis of schizophrenia.