Retinal vessel changes in pulmonary arterial hypertension

Area of Science:

• Ophthalmology
• Cardiology
• Pulmonology

Background:

• Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is primarily viewed as a lung vascular disease.
• Systemic effects of PAH are recognized but not fully understood.
• Retinal vascular changes in PAH patients are not well-documented.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the presence and characteristics of retinal vascular changes in patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH).
• To explore the correlation between retinal vascular parameters and PAH disease severity.
• To assess the potential of retinal imaging for early PAH detection.

Main Methods:

• Retinal fluorescein angiography (FA) was performed on PAH subjects and controls.
• VESsel GENerational Analysis (VESGEN) software was used to analyze vessel branching and tortuosity.
• Clinical data on disease severity were collected for correlation analysis.

Main Results:

• PAH subjects showed significantly higher arterial and venous tortuosity compared to controls.
• Retinal tortuosity was most pronounced in PAH patients without connective tissue disease.
• Increased arterial tortuosity was observed in younger PAH patients, decreasing with age.

Conclusions:

• Pulmonary arterial hypertension is associated with increased retinal vascular tortuosity.
• Retinal vascular changes may serve as an indicator of pulmonary vascular disease progression.
• Fluorescein angiography combined with VESGEN analysis shows promise for noninvasive PAH detection.