Assessment of lamina cribrosa curvature in thyroid orbitopathy: a cross-sectional optical coherence tomography study

Background To evaluate lamina cribrosa (LC) morphology using optical coherence tomography (OCT) in patients with thyroid orbitopathy (TO) and to investigate whether lamina cribrosa curvature (LCC) parameters, particularly the lamina cribrosa curvature index (LCCI), are associated with disease activity or the presence of TO. Methods This cross-sectional study included 92 participants: 12 with active TO, 40 with inactive TO, and 40 healthy controls. Right and left eyes were analyzed separately. Optic nerve head imaging was performed using swept-source optical coherence tomography. Lamina cribrosa thickness, depth, curvature width, curvature depth, and LCCI were compared among active TO, inactive TO, and control groups. Active and inactive TO patients were also combined for case–control analysis. Results There were no significant differences among the three groups in terms of sex distribution or axial length ( p > 0.05). Hertel exophthalmometry (HE) measurements and intraocular pressure were significantly higher in the TO groups compared with controls ( p < 0.001). Regarding LC morphology, no statistically significant differences were observed among active TO, inactive TO, and healthy controls in LCT, LCD, LCCW, LCCD, or LCCI for either right or left eyes. Similarly, case–control analysis comparing the combined TO group with healthy controls demonstrated no significant differences in any LC parameter (all p > 0.05). A direct pairwise comparison between active and inactive TO likewise showed no statistically significant difference in any LC parameter. Conclusions LC curvature and related structural parameters did not show statistically significant differences between patients with TO and healthy individuals. These findings suggest that, in patients with TO without dysthyroid optic neuropathy, LCCI alone may have limited utility as a structural marker of disease presence or clinical activity.