The microvasculature in myeloproliferative disease. A study using retinal fluorescein angiography

Microvascular occlusion is known to be a feature of myeloproliferative diseases. Acute manifestations are well documented in individuals causing a variety of symptoms. However, it is not known whether ongoing microvascular changes are present in asymptomatic individuals. We investigated this further by using retinal intravenous fluorescein angiography to image the microvasculature in patients with myeloproliferative disease. In our group of patients fluorescein angiography did not show any ongoing microvascular damage. There appears to be no intrinsic retinal vasculopathy in patients with myeloproliferative disease, suggesting that acute symptomatic events are caused by microemboli in an otherwise normal vascular tree.