Background: Antisocial personality disorder is a frequently studied personality disorder, and its etiopathogenesis is still investigated. Neuroimaging demonstrated that certain regions of the brain could be associated with this disorder, and in the present study, we aimed to investigate the changes in retina, which could be considered an extension of the brain in antisocial personality disorder patients with optical coherence tomography.
Methods: The study was conducted with 35 patients and 35 healthy controls. The study data were collected with the Sociodemographic and Clinical Data Form, Beck Anxiety Inventory, Beck Depression Inventory, and Barratt Impulsivity Scale—Short Form. Retinal nerve fiber layer thickness, choroidal thickness, and macular thickness were analyzed based on optical coherence tomography.
Results: The Beck Depression Inventory (P=.044), Beck Anxiety Inventory (P=.005), Barratt Impulsivity Scale—motor (P < .001), Barratt Impulsivity Scale—non-planning dimension (P < .001), and Barratt Impulsivity Scale—total scores (P < .001) of the patients were significantly higher when compared to the controls. The superior (P=.013) and inferior retinal nerve fiber layer thickness (P < .001) of the patients were significantly lower when compared to the control group.
Conclusion: Retinal nerve fiber layer thickness was significantly lower in the patient group when compared to healthy controls, which suggested that it could be associated with the pathophysiology of antisocial personality disorder.
Cite this article as: Sırlıer Emir B, Yıldız S, Kazgan Kılıçaslan A, Kurt O, Keser S, Uğur K. Evaluation of optical coherence tomography findings in antisocial personality disorder patients. Alpha Psychiatry. 2023;24(4):121-127.