Studies on retinal blood flow. II. Diabetic retinopathy
J. G. Cunha-Vaz, J. R. Fonseca, J. R. de Abreu and J. J. Lima
Diabetic patients grouped according to the evolutive stages of their
retinal involvement were examined by a direct method for estimation of
segmental retinal blood flow by slit-lamp fluorophotometry. Initial stages
of retinal involvement in diabetes, in which the only alteration is a
breakdown of the blood-retinal barrier, show values of segmental blood flow
that are within normal limits. Patients with a minimal background
retinopathy show a slight increase in retinal blood flow, whereas an highly
significant increase of segmental blood flow is observed in the more
advanced stages of background retinopathy with maculopathy. In general, a
good correlation is apparent between the progressions of diabetic
background retinopathy and increase in retinal blood flow. On the other
hand, patients with proliferative retinopathy show lower values of retinal
blood flow, which are attributable to a marked decrease in arterial
diameter.
