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Can Looking At Your Retina In Your Eye Indicate Heart Health?
Posted on
Tue, 22 May 2018
Medically reviewed by
Ask A Doctor - 24x7 Medical Review Team
Tue, 22 May 2018
Answered on
Fri, 12 Jan 2024
Last reviewed on
Question : Can looking at your retina in your eye indicate heart health? My doctor says I have attenuated vessels but my blood pressure is never really high unless I go to the doctors office and then it jumps up .. most of the time my blood pressure is low..I do have diastolic dysfunction at 1 .. what can I do to lower this ?? I exercise and try to eat right but I am worried about these findings.. my eye doctor says it is because I am so nearsighted and my eyes are longer which stretches the vessels out to make them appear attenuated.. but I ha e not heard anyone else ha I gotta this problem thanks so much!!
Brief Answer:
You just need to monitor your bp
Detailed Answer:
Hello,
Attenuation is general pathology in retina and it has got multiple causes including hypertension and other including which is mentioned by opthalmologist. So, he mentioned it appears attenuated, which is subjective finding and some may notice and other may not. He also mentioned, it may appear to be due to myopia, which may be a likely cause in you as you are mentioning your bp is normal most the time. It can also occur with age and atherosclerosis. So you don't need treatment for attenuation but for the cause of it, which is likely myopia ( short sightedness) as mentioned by opthalmologist, and I guess must be on treatment for it.
Now, as far as heart health is concerned, best line of action is you should just monitor your bp thrice a day for a week and once or twice weekly after that. If bp majority of the bp readings are fine then no action needed at the moment. Also, regarding diastolic dysfunction, which can occur very commonly in elders and needs no treatment at the moment.
You continue to have healthy lifestyle, regular exercises, low salt, oily and fatty diet. So, overall, from hearts point of view, I don't see anything to worry about, if you don't have any heart related symptoms. I guess, you must have undergone, routine screening of lipid profile, sugars etc and if not try to get it done.
Hope this helps you and get back if you have any doubts
You just need to monitor your bp
Detailed Answer:
Hello,
Attenuation is general pathology in retina and it has got multiple causes including hypertension and other including which is mentioned by opthalmologist. So, he mentioned it appears attenuated, which is subjective finding and some may notice and other may not. He also mentioned, it may appear to be due to myopia, which may be a likely cause in you as you are mentioning your bp is normal most the time. It can also occur with age and atherosclerosis. So you don't need treatment for attenuation but for the cause of it, which is likely myopia ( short sightedness) as mentioned by opthalmologist, and I guess must be on treatment for it.
Now, as far as heart health is concerned, best line of action is you should just monitor your bp thrice a day for a week and once or twice weekly after that. If bp majority of the bp readings are fine then no action needed at the moment. Also, regarding diastolic dysfunction, which can occur very commonly in elders and needs no treatment at the moment.
You continue to have healthy lifestyle, regular exercises, low salt, oily and fatty diet. So, overall, from hearts point of view, I don't see anything to worry about, if you don't have any heart related symptoms. I guess, you must have undergone, routine screening of lipid profile, sugars etc and if not try to get it done.
Hope this helps you and get back if you have any doubts
Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Vaishalee Punj
Every test looks ok except my cholesterol was a little high.. my hdl were at 62..and my ldl were elevated at 120.so he said to watch my diet.. a year ago my hs crp was a little elevated.. this year they did crp test only and that was completely normal.. should they repeat hs crp test? Thanks again!!!
Brief Answer:
Once a year crp is fine
Detailed Answer:
ok...
Once a year is fine. No need to repeat it now, may be after six months or year. Meanwhile, healthy lifestyle should be continued. All the best.
Once a year crp is fine
Detailed Answer:
ok...
Once a year is fine. No need to repeat it now, may be after six months or year. Meanwhile, healthy lifestyle should be continued. All the best.
Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Vaishalee Punj
Answered by
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