HAASE, BUCHNER Microemboli are not a CG T. prerequisite in retinal artery occlusive diseases Abstract patientsgll, A wide variety of systemic disorders associated with haemorheological Purpose Retinal artery occlusion (RAO) is abnormalities have also been caused by arterio-arterial or cardiovascular � ., described2.�,<J.II.lh2, 2, emboli in about of all cases, but the role 50% While an embolic occlusion of the retinal of non-embolic causes remains unclear. arteries in AFX often does not last long enough Subjects and methods We studied patients 27 to be visible during fundoscopy intravenous with amaurosis fugax (AFX), branch retinal fluorescein angiography might detect remnants artery occlusion (BRAO), central retinal artery of embolic material or could show details of occlusion KRAO) and anterior ischaemic abnormal retinal circulation in CRAO or optic neuropathy (AION). Patients underwent BRA02,� and, rarely, in non-arteritic AION an evaluation of cerebrovascular and also.:>5· 1, 7 Detection of embolic material flowing cardiovascular risk factors, measurement of within the large brain-supplying arteries has haemorheological parameters, and Doppler/ become possible by means of ultrasound duplex sonography including ultrasound techniques2h-:>1l In RAO of embolic origin, detection of cerebral microembolic signals and arteriosclerotic plaque and stenosis of the echocardiography. carotid arteries can be detected by Doppler and Results Forty-one per cent of the patients had duplex sonography.12, I.1 internal carotid atherosclerosis but only one We studied patients with RAO and AFX to patient had microembolic signals, probably evaluate the incidence of microembolic signals due to a cardiac thrombus. Vascular risk detectable by Doppler sonography, their factors, especially hypertension, were present pOSSible sources and other non-embolic causes. in of the patients correlating with 82% abnormal haemorheological parameters such as increased thrombocyte reactivity. Subjects and methods Conclusions Our results indicate that altered Twenty-seven patients with unilateral haemorheological parameters, especially impairment of visual acuity underwent increased thrombocyte reactivity and vascular neurological and ophthalmological examination risk factors such as arterial hypertension, are days after onset of symptoms. Diagnosis non-embolic causes of vascular disease in a 1-28 was based on clinical presentation, symptoms significant number of patients with RAO. This and signs. Five patients were excluded because should guide diagnostic and therapeutic of inflammation of the optic nerve, arteritic considerations concerning RAO in cases AION and systemic disease. without proven embolic sources. Twenty-two patients received ultrasound examinations of the extra cranial arteries by Key Doppler sonography, Embolus words Doppler /duplex ultrasound and of the detection, Haemorheology, Retinal artery transcranial arteries by transcranial Doppler occlusive disease, Vascular risk factors (TCD), including the ophthalmic arteries. Plaque characterisation and the extent of carotid Acute loss of visual acuity or unilateral visual atherosclerosis were determined. TCD detection field loss due to arterial occlusive diseases may of microembolic signals was performed with an CG. Haase be transient or permanent. Clinicians usually EME Pioneer TC system for a duration of 4040 Buchner differentiate acute prolonged arterial occlusion T. at least half an hour in both middle cerebral Departments of Neurology such as central retinal artery occlusion (CRAO), arteries through a thin region of the temporal and Ophthalmology branch retinal artery occlusion (BRAO)L2 and bone (ultrasound window). Where bilateral University Hospital of non-arteritic anterior ischaemic optic insonation was impossible (due to an absent Munster Munster neuropathy (AION)3-5 from amaurosis fugax temporal ultrasound window) only the Germany (AFX).&--10 Risk factors for RAO include symptomatic side was insonated. Analysis of Dr CG. Haase hypertension,1.11.12 potential embolic sources hyperintense transient (microembolic) signals � Grafelfinger Strasse 96 from carotid atherosclerosis�·n-21 and cardiac (HITS) was performed during on-line recording D-81375 Munich embolising diseasesll,22,23 in about half the by means of digital audio tape, followed by a Germany if; 199H 659 Eye (1998) 12, 659--662 Royal C()lle�e of Ophthalm()lo�ists �--c-��---.-.... " ,-------��---�. -.�-,­ ,to . " ."'" and (5) characteristic acoustic sound (Fig. 1). Twelve ; : patients underwent transthoracic and/ or '.\ . , , transoesophageal echocardiography to rule out 100 . cardioembolic sources. Haemorheological testing (own laboratory standard) included platelet reactivity (normal value: 0.98 ::':: 0.09; mean +3 standard deviations (SO) = 1.25), erythrocyte aggregation with high shear (normal value: 5.9 1.4) or ::':: low shear (normal value: 10.0 fibrinogen level ± 2.2), (normal value: 298 67 mg/dl), plasma viscosity 80 ::':: (normal value: 1.25 0.07 cP), serum viscosity (normal �----------------- �-�--�--�--- ::':: ."vi--� ---I value: 1.21 0.06 cP) and haematocrit (normal value: ::':: 1 iI 0.46 ::':: 0.06) (Table 1). 1 100 1 I ,1 � E"bolus signal I Results I Data of 14 men and 8 women, aged 65.4 11.1 years, are I . I ::':: � o� \ summarised in Table 1. Four patients had AFX, 6 suffered from AION, 9 patients had BRAO, and I 3 Reduced gain ! patients had CRAO. Vascular risk factors were present 18 of 22 (81%) 80 in patients, including arterial hypertension (HT) in 16 of 18 Hyperintense transient signal (embolus signal) in the right Fig. 1. (89%), hypercholesterolaemia (HC) in 8 (45%), diabetes middle cerebral artery (depth mm) of patient no. with normal 50 20 mellitus (OM) in 1, obesity (0) 8 (45%), nicotine abuse and reduced gain. in (N) in 4 (22%) patients and cardiac diseases (CD), second off-line analysis of tapes. Criteria based on including a history of myocardial infarction and international consensus27 were: (1) duration <0.1 s, (2) coronary artery disease in 6 (33%). irregular appearance during cardiac cycles, (3) intensity Ipsilateral to the diseased eye ultrasound >8 dB above background noise, (4) unidirectional signal examinations of the carotid arteries revealed internal Pathogenic parameters in arterial occlusive diseases of the eye Table 1. b Patient Age Doppler Irate d f no. (years) Sex Typea of embol{ Risk factors Haemorrhagee TTE/TEE 1 62 M AFX-os 0/0 HT,CD F,HK 2 81 M CRA�-os 0/0 HT,He, CD F, PV TEE 3 60 M CRAO-od 0/0 HT,O Normal values 4 80 M BRAO-os 80%/0 HT,HC,CD,N TA TIE 5 75 F BRAO-od 0/0 None F, TA,HS, LS 6 69 M BRAO-od 30%/0 HT,He, CD TA 7 59 F BRAO-os 0/0 HT,He, F, PV 0 8 50 M BRAO-od 0/0 HT F,TA, HS, SV, PV, HK TIE 9 55 M BRAO-os 0/0 HT,HC,N,O TIE 10 62 M AION-od 0/0 N,O TA,HK TEE 11 48 F AION-os 70%/0 HC HS,LS, SV TIE/TEE 12 74 F AION-od 0/0 HT,HC,O, CD F,TA, HS, SV 13 69 F AION-od 0/0 HT, DM,O TA, HS, SV, LS 14 62 M AION-os 30%/0 HT,O 15 44 M AFX-os 0/0 HT,He, TA,SV, HK TIE 0 16 57 M AFX-od 0/0 HT TA,HK TIE 17 60 M AFX-od 90%/0 None TA TIE 18 80 F BRAO-od 30%/- HT,CD TA 19 80 F BRAO-od < 30%/- None 20 73 M AION-od < 30%/R 14/h; L 10/h- HT,N TIE/TEE 21 59 M BRAO-os 0/0 HT TEE 22 80 F CRAO-od 70%/- None TIE aType of retinal artery occlusive disease (os,oculus sinister; od,oculus dexter): AFX,amaurosis fugax; AION,anterior ischaemic optic neuropathy; BRAO, retinal artery branch occlusion; CRAO, central retinal artery occlusion. b Doppler: Doppler/duplex sonographic grade of stenosis ipsilateral to the diseased eye. cEmboli: Detection and number of HITS/hour. -, no detectable ultrasound window on either side. d Risk factors: HT,hypertension; He,hypercholesterolaemia; N,nicotine abuse; DM,diabetes mellitus; CD,cardiac disease; obesity. 0, eHaemorheology: TA,increased thrombocyte reactivity; LS/HS,increased erythrocyte low/high shear; SVPV,increased serum/plasma viscosity; F,increased fibrinogen; HK, increased haematocrit. fTTE/TEE: transthoracic/transoesophageal echocardiography. 660 carotid artery (ICA) stenosis in 9 of 22 patients (41%), carotid stenosis. In the other patients neither HITS nor including stenosis of <30% in 5 patients, <70% in 1 and extensive carotid artery disease were found. In these >70% in 3 patients. Bilateral HITS with a rate of 14/h to patients we did, however, find vascular risk factors, the right and 10/h to the left middle cerebral artery were especially arterial hypertension, which correlates with detected in only one patient (no. 20). In the other 18 findings of previous studies.1,1l,30 Haemorheological patients no HITS could be found. In 3 additional patients parameters were also altered. In particular thrombocyte no temporal ultrasound windows could be detected. reactivity was increased, previously described in Twelve of 22 (55%) patients received transthoracic RAO?s.32 In non-arteritic AION the embolic origin is (TTE) and transos oesophageal (TEE) echocardiography; controversial and despite single reports, as in our patient, 10 patients refused the examinations. Eight patients had mostly rejected by investigators?-S,17,19 The same holds normal results without evidence of cardiac disease or true for CRAO and BRAO.2,4.21.23.32 In AFX the majority cardioembolic sources. One patient (no. 10) had aortic of investigators support an embolic origin.4,6-10,21,32 valve sclerosis without stenosis, 1 patient (no. 2) had left Our study confirmed the importance of non-embolic vetricular hypertrophy and 1 patient (no. 11) had a septal factors, particularly arterial hypertension together with aneurysm, all 3 without visible cardiac thrombi. One increased thrombocyte reactivity, in RAO. Only a patient (no. 20) showed a mural aneurysm with a large minority of patients had potential carotid or cardiac thrombus adhesive to the ventricular wall.