The rim area of the optic nerve head, assessed with Heidelberg retina tomography, is smaller in prematurely born children than in children born at term.

PURPOSE: To examine the optic nerve head with Heidelberg tomography (HRT) in prematurely born school-age children and compare them to children born at term.

METHODS: Sixty-three 5-16-year-old children born with a gestational age (GA) of ≤32 weeks were included in the study and compared to 54 children of the same age, born at term. In the preterm group, 29 children had had retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) and nine children had neurological complications. The optic nerve head was assessed with HRT. Three measurements were performed, and the different topographic parameters were noted.

RESULTS: Rim area of the optic nerve was significantly smaller in prematurely born children than in children born at term. The mean difference was 0.146 mm2 (p = 0.02). No difference between the groups was found regarding disc area or cup area. In the preterm group, both disc and rim areas were reduced with increasing GA. No correlations with birthweight, ROP or neurological complications were found.

CONCLUSION: Reduced rim area of the optic nerve head was found in preterm children of school age. Previous ROP or neurological complication did not influence the result, suggesting the preterm birth per se was the reason for the reduction. Establishing whether this finding was caused by disturbed maturation of the optic nerve or by injury of the axons, or a combination of the two, will require further research.