Abstract
Purpose: To evaluate the changes in the retinal microvasculature and its reactivity in chronic cigarette smokers.Methods: Thirty-four male chronic cigarette smokers and 18 male non-smokers were enrolled. Optical coherence tomography angiography was used to measure the perfused retinal vessel densities (PVDs) of the peripapillary and parafoveal areas at baseline and during phase IV of the Valsalva maneuver (VM-IV). Systemic blood pressure and intraocular pressure were also measured.Results: The baseline PVD in the peripapillary area of the smokers was significantly lower than the non-smokers (59.56 ± 2.26% vs. 61.67 ± 3.58%, respectively; P = 0.005). However, there was no significant difference in the foveal avascular zone or parafoveal PVD between the two groups. During VM-IV, the peripapillary PVD of the smokers decreased by 1.13 ± 3.50%, which was significantly less than that of the non-smokers (−3.83 ± 4.26%, P < 0.05). Similarly, the parafoveal PVD of the smokers decreased by 5.49 ± 9.70%, which was significantly less than the percentage change of the non-smokers (−13.01 ± 8.39%, P < 0.05). There was no significant difference in the percentage change in systemic blood pressure parameters between the two groups.Conclusion: The retinal microvasculature and its reactivity were impaired in chronic smokers compared with non-smokers. The extent of impairment differed among different regions of the fundus.
Highlights
Smoking is a global public health issue, which causes ∼7 million deaths each year worldwide [1]
The right eyes of 34 male chronic smokers and 18 male nonsmokers were enrolled in the study
P, The Spherical equivalence (SE) values between the two group was compared with Mann-Whitney U-tests
Summary
Smoking is a global public health issue, which causes ∼7 million deaths each year worldwide [1]. Tobacco consumption in China accounts for 40% of global consumption [2]. Cigarette smoke contains numerous compounds, many of which have toxic and deleterious effect on the vascular system of the human body [4]. According to a World Health Organization report, cigarette smoking contributes to 10– 30% of all cardiovascular deaths worldwide [5], and several epidemiological surveys have reported that smoking is strongly associated with ocular vascular diseases, such as retinal ischemia and anterior ischemic optic neuropathy [6]. The exact pathophysiological process remains unclear, endothelial dysfunction is thought to play a crucial role in the vascular diseases induced by smoking
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