Objective:

Evaluate the reference values for ocular arterial circulation dynamics in patients with essential arterial hypertension.

Methods:

A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted of 105 hypertensive patients and a group of 33 non-hypertensive subjects aged 18-60 years with no antecedents of diabetes mellitus or ocular conditions such as glaucoma or having undergone cataract surgery, ocular hypertension or others. All the patients underwent systemic arterial pressure measurement, clinical ophthalmological examination and color Doppler carotid and orbital ultrasonography.

Results:

A predominance was observed of the female sex, white skin color and age between the fourth and fifth decades of life. There was an increase in peak systolic velocity, end diastolic velocity and the resistive index in the ophthalmic artery, which ranged from normal in the non-hypertensive group to high average levels in the hypertensive group, higher in uncontrolled cases. Analysis of these parameters did not find any change in central retinal or short posterior ciliary arteries.

Conclusions:

In the cases studied, the peak systolic velocity increase in the ophthalmic artery could be related to localized vascular obstruction areas or vasospasm. An association was found between uncontrolled arterial pressure and high resistive index values in the ophthalmic artery.

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