AIM: To compare the macular subfoveal choroidal thickness(SFCT)and choroidal vascular index(CVI)between the patients with internal carotid artery stenosis(ICAS)but without ocular symptoms and controlled healthy people.

METHODS: This is a retrospective comparative study. Forty eyes(grouped as ICAS group)from 40 ICAS patients and 40 eyes(grouped as control group)from 20 matched healthy people were included in this study. All included eyes were received OCT scanning to measure the SFCT. And OCT images were binarized with Image J software to measure CVI values. These values were compared between the two groups.

RESULTS: SFCT of ICAS group and control group were 208±66μm and 234±77μm respectively, with no statistical difference between the two groups(P=0.27). The CVI of ICAS group(64.5%±1.7%)was significantly lower compared with that of control group's(66.1%±2.7%)(P=0.04). The area under the curve(AUC)of CVI in the ROC curve was 0.76 (P=0.005), while the AUC of SFCT was 0.58(P=0.41).

CONCLUSION: It is suggested that compared with the detection of SFCT, the detection of CVI is more helpful to the early discovering of the changes of choroidal circulation in this kind of patients.