Can an eye exam predict the risk of heart attack or stroke?

This study investigated whether patients who have damage to the blood vessels in the eye are at greater risk of heart complications. They found that patients who had subtle damage to the blood vessels in the eye were more likely to suffer from major heart problems such as heart attack, heart failure, stroke, or death.

Major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE) is a name for serious complications due to heart disease. This includes heart attack, heart failure, stroke, and death. These problems are caused by changes to the blood vessels in the heart and brain. Diabetes, smoking, high blood pressure, and high cholesterol all increase a patient’s risk of MACE. However, a significant number of people develop MACE without having these risk factors. It is therefore important to find other ways of identifying people who may be at risk of serious heart problems so that they can be treated before these problems occur.

The eye is the only part of the body where blood vessels can be seen. This is useful because early damage to the blood vessels can be identified through a special eye exam. If there is damage to the blood vessels in the eye it is likely that there is damage to the blood vessels in the heart and brain as well. It is not yet known if these early signs of blood vessel damage make it more likely that a patient will develop major heart problems in the future.

242 patients with heart disease or risk factors for heart disease were selected for this study. Risk factors included diabetes, hypertension, high cholesterol, and smoking. At the start of the study, each patient underwent a special eye test called a dynamic retinal vessel assessment to look for subtle signs of damage in the blood vessels of the eye. They were then followed for an average of 8.6 years to see if they developed MACE.

Of 242 patients, 36% developed MACE. Those patients who had the greatest damage to the blood vessels in the eye at the start of the study were the most likely to develop MACE. Patients in this group were 5.2 times more likely to develop MACE than patients with healthier blood vessels in the eyes. These patients were also twice as likely to die.

This study concluded that damage to the blood vessels in the eye can predict serious heart problems, including heart failure, heart attack, stroke, and death. The authors suggested that a detailed examination of the eye may be useful for identifying patients who are at risk of these problems in the future.

More studies are needed to see if this damage to the blood vessels in the eye can be treated and if it can be used to monitor the risk of heart disease over time.

If you have concerns about eye damage and complications from heart disease, please discuss with your doctor.