Background Narrowing of small arteries and arterioles and increase of peripheral resistance are the characteristics of arterial hypertension.
The aim of the study to comparatively evatuale retinal arterioles and venules width in patients with arterial hypertension and clinically healthy subjects as well as to analyse the relation between the width of retinal vasculature and selected haemodynamic parameters.
Material and methods The examinations were performed in 98 subjects divided into two groups: group I — 49 patients, aged 57.3 ± 10.3 years, with mild and moderate arterial hypertension and group II — 49 clinically healthy subjects, aged 51. 8 ± 8.6 years. The duration of hypertension was (group I) 5.1 ± 2.1 years. The patients were administered angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors and calcium antagonists. The examination methods included: clinical examinations with traditional method of arterial pressure measurement, laboratory investigations, ophthalmological examination qualifying and estimating retinal vessels with the use of fundus camera Topcon TRC NWt SF digital archives system and image data base Imaginet 2000. The mean was calculated from four measurements of retinal arterioles and venules of the right and left eye.
Results The width of retinal arterioles in hypertensive patients was statistically significantly smaller than in subjects from the control group (86.77 ± 8.55 μm v. 92.29 ± 12.83 μm; p = 0.0221, whereas the width of venules did not differ between the investigated groups. The ratio of the arteriole-to-venule width was statistically significantly lower in the examined group as compared to the controls (0.72 ± 0.09 v. 0.78 ± 0.08; p = 0.000). In the multiple correlation analysis, in the group of hypertensive patients, taking into consideration age and other selected factors of cardiovascular risk (gender, BMI, serum level of glucose, total cholesterol, HDL- and LDL-cholesterol, triglicerydes, CRP and value of glomerular filtration rate), a statistically significant negative correlation was observed between systolic, diastolic and mean arterial blood pressure, pulse pressure and the width of retinal arterioles and the retinal arteriole-to-venule ratio, but positive correlation with the width of retinal venules. From among cardiovascular risk factors only age had a significant influence on the width of retinal vessels.
Conclusions The following are observed in patients with arterial hypertension compared to clinically healthy subjects:
1. Decrease of the width of retinal arterioles and the A/V ratio.
2. Negative correlation between the value of systolic, diastolic and mean arterial blood pressure and pulse pressure, and retinal arterioles, and arteriole-to-venule ratio, whereas positive correlation between pressure parameters and retinal venules width.
Arterial Hypertension 2011, vol. 15, no 2, pages 83–92.