Effect of 0.01% Atropine Eye Drops on Choroidal Thickness in Myopic Children

Purpose: To examine the effects of low-dose atropine on the choroidal thickness (CT) of young children in Shanghai, China, as well as the ocular biometrics of myopic patients.

Methods: A total of 59 eyes of 35 myopic children had subfoveal CT and ocular biometry measurements taken before and after 2weeks, 4weeks, and 8weeks of treatment with 0.01% atropine. All eyes were measured using swept-source optical coherence tomography. CT and changes in it were also recorded.

Results: The choroid exhibited significant and continuous thickening under the fovea after patients were treated with 0.01% atropine. The magnitude of change in CT varied with the location and with the duration of treatment. The greatest change was observed in the fovea. There was no significant relationship between changes in subfoveal CT and axial length.

Conclusions: Using 0.01% atropine eye drops significantly increased CT in eyes of young myopic children, by variable magnitude depending upon location.