TY - JOUR
T1 - Vascular Outcome in Men with Asymptomatic Retinal Cholesterol Emboli
T2 - A Cohort Study
AU - Bruno, Askiel
AU - Jones, William L.
AU - Austin, Jeffrey K.
AU - Carter, Shelley
AU - Qualls, Clifford
PY - 1995/2/15
Y1 - 1995/2/15
N2 - Objective: To determine whether asymptomatic retinal cholesterol embolism is a risk factor for vascular events. Design: Cohort study with retrospectively selected controls. Setting: A Veterans Affairs medical center. Patients: 70 consecutive patients with asymptomatic retinal cholesterol emboli on dilated ocular examination in an eye clinic and 70 controls without retinal emboli. Controls were matched to patients for sex; age; prevalence of hypertension, diabetes mellitus, and ischemic heart disease; serum cholesterol level; and smoking history. Measurements: Stroke, myocardial infarction, and death. Results: During a mean follow-up of 3.4 years, stroke occurred at an annual rate of 8.5% among patients and 0.8% among controls (adjusted relative risk, 9.9; 95% Cl, 2.3 to 43.1; P = 0.002). Nineteen strokes occurred, 17 in patients and 2 in controls; all were nonfatal cerebral infarctions. Twelve of the 17 that occurred in patients were in a carotid artery territory ipsilateral to the qualifying retinal cholesterol embolus and 5 were in another vascular territory. Ocular infarction or hemorrhagic stroke did not occur. Nonfatal myocardial infarction or vascular death occurred at an annual rate of 7.7% among patients and 4.9% among controls (adjusted relative risk, 1.4; 95% Cl, 0.7 to 2.9; P = 0.39). Conclusion: Asymptomatic retinal cholesterol embolism is an important risk factor for cerebral infarction independent of commonly recognized vascular risk factors.
AB - Objective: To determine whether asymptomatic retinal cholesterol embolism is a risk factor for vascular events. Design: Cohort study with retrospectively selected controls. Setting: A Veterans Affairs medical center. Patients: 70 consecutive patients with asymptomatic retinal cholesterol emboli on dilated ocular examination in an eye clinic and 70 controls without retinal emboli. Controls were matched to patients for sex; age; prevalence of hypertension, diabetes mellitus, and ischemic heart disease; serum cholesterol level; and smoking history. Measurements: Stroke, myocardial infarction, and death. Results: During a mean follow-up of 3.4 years, stroke occurred at an annual rate of 8.5% among patients and 0.8% among controls (adjusted relative risk, 9.9; 95% Cl, 2.3 to 43.1; P = 0.002). Nineteen strokes occurred, 17 in patients and 2 in controls; all were nonfatal cerebral infarctions. Twelve of the 17 that occurred in patients were in a carotid artery territory ipsilateral to the qualifying retinal cholesterol embolus and 5 were in another vascular territory. Ocular infarction or hemorrhagic stroke did not occur. Nonfatal myocardial infarction or vascular death occurred at an annual rate of 7.7% among patients and 4.9% among controls (adjusted relative risk, 1.4; 95% Cl, 0.7 to 2.9; P = 0.39). Conclusion: Asymptomatic retinal cholesterol embolism is an important risk factor for cerebral infarction independent of commonly recognized vascular risk factors.
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U2 - 10.7326/0003-4819-122-4-199502150-00002
DO - 10.7326/0003-4819-122-4-199502150-00002
M3 - Article
C2 - 7825759
AN - SCOPUS:0028894144
SN - 0003-4819
VL - 122
SP - 249
EP - 253
JO - Annals of internal medicine
JF - Annals of internal medicine
IS - 4
ER -