Retinal Imaging: A Convenient Tool To Study Microvascular Responses To Cardiovascular Disease Risk Factors And To Predict Hypertension And Disease Development

The eye is the clearest and most accessible organ to observe anatomical and physiological characteristics of microvessels, the smallest blood vessels of the circulatory system. The microcirculatory bed of the retina shares similar anatomical and physiological characteristics with the cerebral and coronary circulations. Therefore, subtle changes in the retinal blood vessels can mirror early cardio- and cerebrovascular events long before their clinical manifestation (e.g. hypertension). Retinal images contain information to develop quantitative diagnostic algorithms for morphology, physiology, and pathology. Analysis of retinal images allows quantification of many vascular features: the Central Retinal Arteriolar and Venular Equivalents (CRAE & CRVE), morphological features (branching, tortuosity and geometric pattern of the vascular bed), but also small changes in the diameter of microvessels in response to disease or external factors. Particularly CREA and CRVE have been associated with hypertension, coro...