A review of population-based retinal studies of the microvascular contribution to cerebrovascular diseases.

Studies of retinal signs, as non-invasively obtained markers of microvasculature, may help to assess the microvascular contribution to ischemic cardiovascular diseases, particularly those affecting the brain. Changes in the retinal arterioles are particularly pertinent to ischemia, and several studies show their associations with MRI-assessed cerebral lacunar infarcts and white matter changes. Data are too sparse to judge the contribution to cerebral atrophy or cognitive impairment. Confounding and imprecise measurements may cloud the results of this research. A paired comparison method is proposed for avoiding some of these issues.