Computer‐assisted retinal vessel measurement in an older population: correlation between right and left eyes

This study assessed the correlation between computer‐assisted retinal vessel measurements of right and left eyes, from subjects in a defined, community‐based older population. Retinal photographs from participants in the Blue Mountains Eye Study were digitized. All retinal arterioles and venules located 0.5−1.0 disc diameters from the optic disc margin were identified and a computer program measured their diameters. Pearson correlation (R2) statistic was used to assess the correlation in a random subsample of 1546 images. Substantial correlation between right and left eye measurements was found for summary indices of retinal arterioles (R2 = 0.70) and venules (R2 = 0.77). Higher correlation was found for intragrader (R2 0.75−079) than for intergrader assessment (R2 0.67−0.72). Moderate correlation was found in arteriole‐to‐venule ratio assessed by the same (R2 = 0.57) or different (R2 = 0.52) graders. Measurements from one eye can thus adequately represent the retinal vessel diameters of a person.

[1]  Paul Mitchell,et al.  Reliability of computer‐assisted retinal vessel measurement in a population , 2002, Clinical & experimental ophthalmology.

[2]  L. Lanigan,et al.  Retinal circulation responses to systemic autonomic nerve stimulation , 1988, Eye.

[3]  R. Klein,et al.  Retinal arteriolar diameters and elevated blood pressure: the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities Study. , 1999, American journal of epidemiology.

[4]  O. Brinchmann‐Hansen,et al.  Reliable measurements from fundus photographs in the presence of focusing errors. , 1989, Investigative ophthalmology & visual science.

[5]  R. Kronmal,et al.  Retinal microvascular abnormalities and blood pressure in older people: the Cardiovascular Health Study , 2002, The British journal of ophthalmology.

[6]  J. Jonas,et al.  Parapapillärer retinaler Gefäßdurchmesser - Teil 2: Kaliberverminderung in Glaukomaugen , 1988 .

[7]  Tien Yin Wong,et al.  Reliability of retinal photography in the assessment of retinal microvascular characteristics: the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities Study. , 2002, American journal of ophthalmology.

[8]  J. R. Landis,et al.  The measurement of observer agreement for categorical data. , 1977, Biometrics.

[9]  R. Kronmal.  Spurious Correlation and the Fallacy of the Ratio Standard Revisited , 1993 .

[10]  R. Klein,et al.  Retinal microvascular abnormalities and 10-year cardiovascular mortality: a population-based case-control study. , 2003, Ophthalmology.

[11]  B. Bengtsson,et al.  Correction of optic disc measurements on fundus photographs , 2004, Graefe's Archive for Clinical and Experimental Ophthalmology.

[12]  N L Stokoe,et al.  Normal retinal vascular pattern. Arteriovenous ratio as a measure of arterial calibre. , 1966, The British journal of ophthalmology.

[13]  M. Landers,et al.  Reproducible estimation of retinal vessel width by computerized microdensitometry , 1990, International Ophthalmology.

[14]  R. Klein,et al.  Methods for evaluation of retinal microvascular abnormalities associated with hypertension/sclerosis in the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities Study. , 1999, Ophthalmology.

[15]  R. Klein,et al.  Retinal microvascular abnormalities and incident stroke: the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities Study , 2001, The Lancet.

[16]  J. Jonas,et al.  Parapapillary retinal vessel diameter in normal and glaucoma eyes. II. Correlations. , 1989, Investigative ophthalmology & visual science.

[17]  E. Kohner,et al.  Retinal vessel measurement: comparison between observer and computer driven methods , 2004, Graefe's Archive for Clinical and Experimental Ophthalmology.

[18]  E. Barrett-Connor,et al.  DIETARY VITAMIN D AND CALCIUM AND RISK OF COLORECTAL CANCER: A 19-YEAR PROSPECTIVE STUDY IN MEN , 1985, The Lancet.

[19]  D. Altman,et al.  STATISTICAL METHODS FOR ASSESSING AGREEMENT BETWEEN TWO METHODS OF CLINICAL MEASUREMENT , 1986, The Lancet.

[20]  J. C. Parr,et al.  General caliber of the retinal arteries expressed as the equivalent width of the central retinal artery. , 1974, American journal of ophthalmology.

[21]  A. Stanton,et al.  A method of quantifying retinal microvascular alterations associated with blood pressure and age , 1995, Journal of hypertension.

[22]  R. Klein,et al.  Are retinal arteriolar abnormalities related to atherosclerosis?: The Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities Study. , 2000, Arteriosclerosis, thrombosis, and vascular biology.