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Studying hypertension in ocular fundus images using Hausdorff dispersion ordering
Guillermo Ayala1, María Concepción López-Díaz, Miguel López-Díaz
1Departamento de Estadística e I.O., Universidad de Valencia, Avda. Vicent Andrés Estellés 1, E-46100 Burjasot, Valencia, Spain. guillermo.ayala@uv.es
Insights
Vessel diameter dispersion in retinal images, reflecting vascular health, is higher in hypertensive patients. This dispersion measure is crucial for accurate medical research on cardiovascular risk factors.
Area of Science:
- Ophthalmology
- Cardiology
- Medical Imaging
Background:
- Retinal arterial and vein diameters correlate with cardiovascular health.
- Measurement of retinal vessel diameters from ocular fundus images is a key indicator.
- Dispersion in retinal vessel diameter measurements is often overlooked in clinical research.
Purpose of the Study:
- To propose a method for evaluating how clinical covariables affect retinal arterial and vein diameter dispersion.
- To assess if hypertension and medication levels influence retinal vessel diameter dispersion.
- To investigate the relationship between smoking and retinal vessel diameter dispersion.
Main Methods:
- Utilizing ocular fundus images for retinal vessel diameter measurement.
- Applying a multivariate dispersion ordering, specifically the Hausdorff dispersion order.
- Comparing dispersion levels across different patient groups based on clinical factors.
Main Results:
- Higher dispersion in retinal vessel diameters was observed in individuals with long-standing hypertension.
- Increased dispersion was noted in patients requiring two or more antihypertensive drugs.
- Greater smoking levels appeared to be associated with lesser dispersion in vessel diameters.
Conclusions:
- Dispersion of retinal vessel diameters is a significant factor in individuals with severe hypertension.
- Accounting for dispersion in image analysis of retinal vessels enhances accuracy in medical research.
- Homogeneous grouping based on dispersion analysis can lead to more reliable research outcomes.
Abstract:
Retinal arterial and vein diameters are altered in individuals at risk of cardiovascular events mainly due to high blood pressure. The measurement of retinal vessel diameters has been proved to reflect individuals' vascular health. Dispersion of such measures which are obtained by means of ocular fundus images is a major factor not usually considered in clinical research. In this paper, a method to evaluate if different levels of clinically relevant covariables induce greater dispersion in retinal arterial and vein diameters is proposed. A multivariate dispersion ordering, the Hausdorff dispersion order, is used to compare the level of dispersion in such diameters for different groups of patients. Our statistical conclusions show that dispersion is higher in individuals with long-standing hypertension and in those who need two or more drugs to control hypertension. Hereby, dispersion is increased in the most severely ill persons. However, a greater level of smoking seems to be associated with a lesser dispersion. Dispersion of the vessel diameters must be taken into account in the image analysis of retinal vessel diameters because the comparison between homogeneous groups will produce highly accurate results in medical research.
