Choriocapillaris microvasculature dysfunction in systemic hypertension.

Area of Science:

• Ophthalmology
• Nephrology
• Cardiology

Background:

• Hypertension is a leading cause of cardiovascular and renal disease.
• Microvascular changes in the eye may reflect systemic vascular health.
• Non-invasive imaging techniques are needed to assess these changes.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate choriocapillaris microvasculature in hypertensive patients using SS-OCTA.
• To correlate choriocapillaris flow deficits (CFD) with blood pressure and renal parameters.

Main Methods:

• Utilized swept-source optical coherence tomography angiography (SS-OCTA) to image the choriocapillaris.
• Recruited 71 hypertensive patients and 41 healthy controls.
• Collected data on blood pressure, serum creatinine, urine microalbumin/creatinine ratio (MCR), and calculated estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR).

Main Results:

• Hypertensive patients with poor blood pressure control exhibited larger and fewer choriocapillaris flow deficits (CFD) compared to those with good control and healthy individuals.
• Increased systolic blood pressure, lower eGFR, and higher urine MCR were significantly associated with larger CFD areas and fewer CFD.
• These associations were consistent for both CFD area and number.

Conclusions:

• Choriocapillaris imaging with SS-OCTA shows potential as a non-invasive indicator of systemic microvascular abnormalities in hypertensive disease.
• These findings underscore the link between ocular microvasculature and overall vascular health in hypertension.
• SS-OCTA may offer valuable insights into the systemic effects of hypertension on microcirculation.