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Inverse correlation between coronary and retinal blood flows in patients with normal coronary arteries and slow

Yaron Arbel1, Amir Sternfeld1, Adiel Barak2

  • 1Department of Cardiology, Tel Aviv Medical Center, Affiliated to the Sackler School of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel.

Atherosclerosis
|January 10, 2014
PubMed

Insights

The Retinal Functional Imager (RFI) can non-invasively diagnose slow coronary flow (SCF) in patients with normal coronary arteries. Higher retinal blood flow velocity in SCF patients suggests RFI

Area of Science:

  • Cardiology
  • Vascular Biology
  • Medical Imaging

Background:

  • Slow Coronary Flow (SCF) is linked to microvascular and endothelial dysfunction in patients with normal coronary arteries.
  • Microcirculation can be assessed non-invasively by measuring retinal blood flow velocity.
  • The Retinal Functional Imager (RFI) offers a potential noninvasive method for diagnosing SCF.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To evaluate the efficacy of the Retinal Functional Imager (RFI) as a noninvasive diagnostic tool for slow coronary flow (SCF).
  • To assess the correlation between retinal blood flow velocity and coronary blood flow in patients with normal coronary arteries.

Main Methods:

  • Coronary blood flow velocity was assessed using corrected TIMI Frame Count.
  • Retinal arterioles blood flow was measured using the Retinal Functional Imager (RFI).
  • 28 patients with normal coronary arteries were divided into slow coronary flow (SCF) and normal coronary flow (NCF) groups.

Main Results:

  • A significant inverse correlation was observed between retinal and coronary blood flows (p=0.022).
  • The SCF group exhibited higher retinal arterial flow velocity (3.8 ± 1.1 mm/s) compared to the NCF group (2.9 ± 0.61 mm/s).
  • RFI demonstrated 73% sensitivity and 77% specificity for diagnosing SCF. SCF patients had higher LDL cholesterol and glucose levels.

Conclusions:

  • The Retinal Functional Imager (RFI) can non-invasively diagnose slow coronary flow (SCF).
  • Elevated retinal arteriolar blood flow is characteristic of patients with normal coronary arteries and SCF.
  • Early non-invasive diagnosis of SCF using RFI may aid in identifying individuals at higher risk for coronary atherosclerosis, enabling timely preventive interventions.
Abstract

Keywords:
Coronary flowNormal coronary arteriesRetinal blood flowSlow coronary flowTIMI frame count

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