Macula pigment optical densitometry changes in hydroxychloroquine use.

PURPOSE To investigate the association between hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) use and macular pigment optic densitometry (MPOD) abnormalities. MATERIALS AND METHODS Fifty patients that have been receiving HCQ treatment and forty-eight control subjects were randomly selected from patients with no visual impairment with similar age and gender. All participants underwent detailed ophthalmologic examination including fundus photography, fundus autofluorescence, optic coherence tomography, and visual field analysis. Macular pigment optical density (MPOD) was measured by fundus reflectometry using one -wavelength reflection method. Patients with ongoing HCQ treatment formed the HCQ group and healthy subjects formed the control group. RESULTS Mean age was 50.9 ± 7.9 and 47.9 ± 9.4 years in the HCQ and controls groups respectively (p = 0.098) Between the groups, there is no significant difference in central foveal thickness and mean deviation and pattern standard deviation in the visual field analysis. Parafoveal hyper fluorescence lesions were detected in 5 (%10) patients. Choroidal thickness was significantly decreased in the HCQ group (p = 0.001). Maximum and mean MPOD outcomes were significantly lower in the HCQ group (p = 0.005, p = 0.003 respectively). Between the groups, there was no difference in mean MPOD volume and MPOD area. CONCLUSIONS Patients with HCQ use have reduced MPOD. Further studies are required investigating the sensitivity and specificity of MPOD in detecting initial retinal changes in patients with HCQ use.