Purpose: To measure peripapillary retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) thickness in healthy Japanese individuals using optical coherence tomography (OCT).
Methods: OCT was used to measure the eyes of 460 healthy Japanese volunteers aged 20 to 84. One eye of each individual was selected for the statistical analysis.
Results: the average circumpapillary (cp) rnfl thickness of all eyes was 111.8 +/- 10.0 microm. a statistically significant negative correlation was found between the average cp rnfl thickness and age. for every decade increase in age, the average cp rnfl thickness decreased by approximately 2.2 microm. the average cp rnfl thickness was estimated to decrease by 0.18% per year. the age-associated reduction in cp rnfl thickness was particularly noted in the inferior-temporal to superior-temporal segments:
Conclusions: Age-related cp RNFL loss varies according to segment. When OCT is used to evaluate cp RNFL thickness, regional and age-related differences need to be taken into consideration.