Objective: To determine the prevalence and risk factors of atherosclerotic lesions in retinal arteries of an urban population undergoing routine physical examinations.
Methods: Demographic and clinical information of subjects participating in annual routine physical examinations at Peking Union Medical Center from January to October of 2010 were collected and summarized. Univariate and multivariate Logistic regression analyses were conducted to evaluate the demographic and clinical factors associated with retinal arterial atherosclerosis.
Results: Among a total of 17 886 non-diabetic adults evaluated during the study period, retinal arterial atherosclerosis was diagnosed in 1721 (9.6%). There were predominantly grade 1 (88%) and grade 2 (11%) lesions. Prevalence of retinal arterial atherosclerosis increased with age. And traditional risk factors for cardiovascular diseases included overweight or obesity, hypertension, dyslipidemia and elevated fasting serum glucose. In a multivariate Logistic regression model, advanced age, male gender, obesity or overweight, hypertension and dyslipidemia were independently associated with a higher risk of retinal arterial atherosclerosis. Hypertension was prevalent in subjects above 40 years old while overweight or obesity had a high prevalence in all age groups.
Conclusion: Retinal arterial atherosclerosis is common in this urban population. And aging, overweight/obesity and hypertension are the dominant risk factors. Routine physical examination is valuable for both the prevention and an early diagnosis of this disease.