Correlation Between Coronary and Retinal Microangiopathy in Patients With STEMI

Area of Science:

• Ophthalmology
• Cardiology
• Medical Imaging

Background:

• ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) is a severe form of coronary heart disease (CHD).
• Microvascular dysfunction is increasingly recognized in CHD patients.
• Optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) allows non-invasive visualization of retinal microvasculature.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the correlation between retinal microvascular changes detected by OCTA and coronary microvascular circulation in STEMI patients.
• To assess the relationship between retinal vascular density and indicators of cardiac function and coronary artery disease severity.

Main Methods:

• OCTA imaging was performed on 330 eyes from 165 participants (88 STEMI cases, 77 controls).
• Vascular density of the superficial capillary plexus (SCP) and deep capillary plexus (DCP) was measured.
• Correlations were analyzed with left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) and the number of affected coronary arteries.

Main Results:

• Decreased SCP, DCP, and choriocapillaris densities correlated positively with LVEF.
• Significant negative correlations were found between SCP and DCP central/perifoveal densities and the number of affected coronary arteries.
• No significant correlation was observed between central SCP/DCP areas or the foveal avascular zone (FAZ) and cardiac parameters.

Conclusions:

• OCTA-derived vascular indices are significantly correlated with morphological and functional parameters in STEMI patients.
• SCP vascular density shows promise as a biomarker for both macrovascular (coronary arteries) and microvascular damage (reflected in LVEF).
• OCTA provides valuable insights into the microvascular status of coronary circulation.