Conclusion
Our results suggest that serum sFlt-1 might have an influence on the choroidal thickness during the pregnancy.
Objective
To investigate the association between serum soluble fms-like tyrosine kinase-1 (sFlt-1) and the choroidal structure during the pregnancy.
Results
The CCT was significantly thicker in the second and third trimester than the postpartum period (p<0.05). In contrast, there was no significant difference in the CVI throughout pregnancy or the postpartum period. Serum sFlt-1 levels were significantly higher during pregnancy than the postpartum period (p<0.05), whereas the serum VEGF levels were significantly lower during pregnancy than the postpartum period (p<0.05). Furthermore, serum sFlt-1 levels were significantly associated with CCT throughout pregnancy (p=0.011, linear mixed model). On the contrary, sFlt-1 levels was not associated with the CVI during the pregnancy.