Detection and management of vascular hypertension.

Classic hypertensive retinopathy has been well known since the first categorization of retinal vascular changes with the ophthalmoscope made by Keith-Wagener and Barker. Clinicians were interested in using a noninvasive tool to show that severity of vascular hypertension was predictive of mortality. Recently, a microvascular etiology has been suggested to play an important role in the pathogenesis of vascular hypertension. The retinal vasculature can potentially be used to evaluate the role of the microcirculation and to provide new insights into the vascular etiology of vascular hypertension. In this review, we have focused the attention on the role of retinal imaging in the work-up of hypertensive subjects.