Observation of the retina might be enough to understand what health conditions we are in. A team of scientists from the Massachusetts Eye and Ear/Broad Institute has discovered that there are connections between the thickness of the retina and the risk of developing various diseases, not only ocular, but also neuropsychiatric and cardiometabolic. It is not the first time that a scientific study has shown that looking into your eyes can help you learn more about your health. Already research by St George’s University of London, published online on British Journal of Ophthalmologyhad shown that retinal imaging, scans of the retina’s network of veins and arteries, with the help of artificial intelligence, can predict cardiovascular disease, without the need for blood tests or measuring blood pressure.
What can be seen with the Oct
The human retina is a highly complex tissue, composed of layers of cells, and these retinal cells can often offer clues to both eye and more general systemic health. This latest research, just published in the journal Science Translational Medicine, analyzed retinal images and health data from more than 44,000 individuals from a large medical database. The retinal images were captured using a technique called optical coherent radiation tomography (OCT), a routine, noninvasive imaging method that builds three-dimensional images of the eye.
The connection between retina, heart and lungs
By performing a series of genotypic studies, the team identified some inherited genes that influence retinal thickness and discovered multiple associations between retinal thickness and various ocular disorders, neuropsychiatric conditions, and cardiac and metabolic diseases during a 10-year follow-up period . For example, researchers discovered a link between thinner retinal layers and heart and kidney disease, and found that thinner layers of photoreceptor segments correlated with worse heart and lung function. The researchers point out, however, that these results still need to be validated to evaluate their clinical utility and are limited by the lack of diversity in the European participant pool.
Subjects