Background

Methamphetamine (Meth) is a highly addictive and hallucinogenic agent which is used as the second most common illicit drug globally. Meth could affect the retina and optic nerve by inducing the release of vasoconstrictive agents such as endothelin 1 and induction of severe oxidative stress with accumulation of reactive oxygen species.

Aim

To evaluate the effects of chronic Meth abuse on the retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL), ganglion cell layer (GCL) and the Bruch’s membrane opening minimum rim width (MRW).

Method

In this case-control study, we recruited 55 Meth abusers and 49 healthy individuals with mean age of 44.63 ± 0.97 and 43.08 ± 0.91 years, respectively. RNFL thickness, GCL thickness and MRW were evaluated using optical coherence tomography.

Results

We found statistically significant decrease in RNFL, MRW thickness in Meth abusers (P: 0.002 and P: 0.006, respectively). We did not detect statistically significant difference regarding GCL thickness between the groups (P = 0.320). Our results showed a weak but statistically significant correlation of Meth dose increment and decrement of RNFL thickness ((P: 0.005, r = -0.193) and MRW (P: 0.013, r = -0.174). We found no correlation between duration of Meth consumption with RNFL and MRW thickness (P: 0.205, r= -0.124; P: 0.771, r= -0.029, respectively).

Conclusion

We found a statistically significant adverse association in meth abusers with RNFL thickness and MRW. These two parameters were also statistically associated with the meth dose as measured by daily dose of Meth. Although we found a decrease in the GCL thickness, it did not reach statistical significance.

中文翻译：

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慢性甲基苯丙胺滥用对视网膜神经纤维层，神经节细胞层和Bruch膜开口最小边缘宽度的影响。

背景

甲基苯丙胺（甲基苯丙胺）是一种高度成瘾性和致幻剂，被用作全球第二大最常见的非法药物。通过诱导血管收缩剂（如内皮素1）的释放和诱导严重的氧化应激（伴随活性氧的积累），甲烷可影响视网膜和视神经。

目标

为了评估慢性滥用甲基苯丙氨酸对视网膜神经纤维层（RNFL），神经节细胞层（GCL）和Bruch膜开口最小边缘宽度（MRW）的影响。

方法

在这个案例对照研究中，我们招募了55名滥用甲基苯丙胺的人和49名健康个体，其平均年龄分别为44.63±0.97和43.08±0.91岁。使用光学相干断层扫描技术评估RNFL厚度，GCL厚度和MRW。

结果

我们发现，滥用甲基苯丙胺的人的RNFL，MRW厚度有统计学显着性下降（分别为P：0.002和P：0.006）。我们没有发现两组之间的GCL厚度在统计学上有显着差异（P = 0.320）。我们的研究结果表明，甲基苯丙胺剂量增加和RNFL厚度递减（（P：0.005，r = -0.193）和MRW（P：0.013，r = -0.174）之间的关系较弱，但在统计学上具有显着相关性。 RNFL和MRW厚度时的能量消耗（分别为P：0.205，r = -0.124; P：0.771，r = -0.029）。

结论

我们发现在甲基苯丙胺滥用者与RNFL厚度和MRW之间存在统计学上的显着不良关联。这两个参数也与甲基苯丙胺的剂量在统计学上相关联，该方法的甲基苯丙胺剂量由甲基苯丙胺的日剂量测量。尽管我们发现GCL厚度有所减少，但没有达到统计学意义。