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Blood pressure, vessel caliber, and retinal thickness in diabetes

Wendy W Harrison1, Ann Chang, Maria G Cardenas

  • 1University of California Berkeley, School of Optometry and Group in Vision Science, Berkeley, California, USA. wharri@midwestern.edu

Optometry and Vision Science : Official Publication of the American Academy of Optometry
|November 20, 2012
PubMed

Insights

High blood glucose and blood pressure significantly impact retinal thickness in diabetic retinopathy patients. These factors are crucial for evaluating retinal health in diabetes management and research.

Area of Science:

  • Ophthalmology
  • Endocrinology
  • Medical Imaging

Background:

  • Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is a complication of diabetes mellitus.
  • Nonproliferative diabetic retinopathy (NPDR) is an early stage of DR.
  • Elevated HbA1c and blood pressure are known risk factors for diabetes complications.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the association between blood pressure (BP), retinal thickness (RT), and vessel caliber in type 2 diabetes patients with high HbA1c.
  • To compare these associations in patients with and without nonproliferative diabetic retinopathy (NPDR).

Main Methods:

  • Study included 43 patients with type 2 diabetes (23 without NPDR, 20 with mild-moderate NPDR) and 22 controls.
  • Measurements included BP, HbA1c, RT (Stratus OCT3), and fundus photography.
  • Correlations between BP, HbA1c, vessel caliber, and RT were analyzed.

Main Results:

  • Diastolic BP (DBP) positively correlated with RT in NPDR patients (p < 0.02).
  • Higher HbA1c associated with higher DBP in the NPDR group (p < 0.02).
  • HbA1c modulated the DBP-RT relationship in NPDR patients; altered vessel caliber observed in diabetic patients.

Conclusions:

  • HbA1c and BP significantly influence RT in patients with DR.
  • These factors are important for clinical assessment and optical coherence tomography studies in DR patients.
Abstract

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