Evaluation of retinal vessel caliber, choroidal thickness, and ocular perfusion pressure in patients with low cardiac ejection fraction

Objectives: This study aims to investigate the retinal vessel caliber, choroidal thickness, and ocular perfusion pressure in patients with low cardiac output. Patients and methods: Between June 2014 and June 2015, a total of 44 patients (34 males, 10 females; mean age 59.3±12.4 years) with low ejection fraction due to dilated cardiomyopathy and 44 healthy, age- and sex-matched individuals (34 males, 10 females; mean age 59.3±8.5 years) were included in this cross-sectional comparative study. All patients in the study group had an ejection fraction less than 40%. Retinal vascular caliber measurements were made using retinal photographs with fluorescein angiography, whereas subfoveal choroidal thickness and foveal thickness were measured using the spectral-domain optical coherence tomography. The ocular perfusion pressure was calculated according to a formula consisting of mean arterial blood pressure and intraocular pressure. Results: There was no statistically significant difference between patients with low cardiac ejection fraction and healthy controls regarding the retinal vascular caliber, subfoveal choroidal thickness, foveal thickness, or ocular perfusion pressure (p>0.05). The mean intraocular pressure was 13.1±2.8 mmHg in the study group and 13.4±2.7 mmHg in the control group (p=0.59). Ejection fraction was not significantly associated with the retinal vascular caliber, subfoveal choroidal thickness, or ocular perfusion pressure (p>0.05). Conclusion: Our findings suggest that reduced cardiac output does not significantly affect the retinal vessel caliber, choroidal thickness, or ocular perfusion pressure in clinical practice.