López Cuenca, InésHoz Montañana, María Rosa DeElvira Hurtado, María LorenaMatamoros Felipe, José AntonioSánchez-Puebla Fernández, LidiaFernández Albarral, JoséRamírez Sebastián, Ana IsabelSalazar Corral, Juan JoséRamírez Sebastián, José ManuelMiguel Tobal, FranciscoGarcía Martín, Elena Salobrar2025-11-032025-11-032025-09López-Cuenca, I.; de Hoz, R.; Elvira-Hurtado, L.; Matamoros, J.A.; Sanchez-Puebla, L.; Fernandez-Albarral, J.A.; Ramírez, A.I.; Salazar, J.J.; Ramirez, J.M.; Miguel-Tobal, F.; et al. Moderate Physical Activity Generates Changes in Retina and Choroid in Low-Fit Adults. Appl. Sci. 2025, 15, 10458. https://doi.org/10.3390/app15191045810.3390/app151910458https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/125637Physical activity has been shown to influence ocular health, yet the acute effects of exercise on retinal and choroidal structures remain underexplored. This prospective pre-post study evaluated 30 low-fit adults without diagnosed cardiovascular disease who underwent comprehensive ophthalmologic assessments, including OCT and OCTA imaging, before and after a submaximal aerobic capacity test. Statistically significant thinning was observed in specific retinal sectors, affecting both inner and outer layers, including the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE). Vascular analysis using the OCTAVA toolbox revealed a significant post-exercise reduction in vessel length density, total vessel length, branchpoint density and fractal dimension in the peripapillary plexus; and mean tortuosity in the macular superficial vascular complex (SVC). Choroidal thickness also showed a significant reduction in several regions. No significant changes were found in the foveal avascular zone (FAZ). These findings suggest that acute submaximal physical activity induces transient yet measurable changes in retinal and choroidal microvasculature. The results have potential implications for understanding ocular vascular dynamics and for evaluating ocular health in clinical and sports medicine contexts.engAttribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 Internationalhttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/journal articlehttps://doi.org/10.3390/app151910458open access611.843Optical coherence tomography (OCT)Optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA)Retinal thicknessChoroidal thicknessRetinal vascular densityPhysical exerciseSubmaximal aerobic testLow-fit adultsOcular microcirculationOCTAVA toolboxOftalmología3201.09 Oftalmología