Biomarkers of Lipid Status and Metabolism in Retinal Hypertensive Disorder

Abstract

Background. Hypertension (HTN) is a preventable risk factor for morbidity and mortality worldwide. Hypertensive retinopathy (HR), its ocular complication, is characterized by progressive metabolic disorders and structural damage of the retina. Lipids play an essential role in retina homeostasis, so an alteration of lipid metabolism specific for HTN may be of great significance in the development of hypertensive retinal injury. The study aimed to investigate the association between HR, traditional lipid biomarkers changes, and the atherogenic index, as well as to highlight a possible role of lipid metabolism markers in HR diagnosis and prognosis. Methods. A total of 90 hypertensive patients from the Republic of Moldova, admitted to the Ovisus Medical Center, Chisinau, Republic of Moldova, for a vision check and firstly diagnosed with HR were recruited in our study. The enrolment period is between February 2018 and December 2019. They were divided into three groups based on fundoscopy, using Keith-Wagner-Barker grading system of HR-GI: 36 patients; GII: 35 patients; GIII: 19 patients. The level of serum lipids: triglycerides, total cholesterol, LDL-Chol, and HDL-Chol was determined, followed by the calculation of the atherogenic index of plasma. Results are displayed as the median and interquartile range (IQR). Kolmogorov-Smirnov and Shapiro-Wilk normality tests were used, followed by Levene's homogeneity of variance test. The groups were compared using the non-parametric Kruskal-Wallis and Mann-Whitney tests. The Spearman correlation coefficient was calculated (SPSS 23.0): p < 0.05-statistically significant. Results. It was attested a statistically significant increase of serum total cholesterol levels between the groups as the HR advanced (p = 0.017). In paired group comparisons, the total cholesterol level in GII significantly enhanced compared to GI 5.63 (IQR 0.69) mM/L vs. 5.49

Lipid Metabolism Biomarkers in Diabetic Retinopathy in Patients With Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus

“…Mostly all the recent data are based on T2DM population [12]. Also, only few studies have speci cally explained the role of lipids and lipoproteins in different retinal diseases [13]. Therefore, we consider that it would be of much interest to search for how conventional biomarkers of lipid status as well as lipoproteins can contribute to the development and progression of DR.…”