Changes in Retinal Hemodynamics in the Optic Nerve Head of Healthy Participants Measured Using Laser Speckle Flowgraphy after a Cold Pressor Test.

Purpose: Autoregulation of retinal vessels is stronger than that of choroidal vessels. This study aimed to use laser speckle flowgraphy to determine the time course of changes in retinal hemodynamics of healthy eyes after a cold pressor test.

Methods: This prospective study included 44 right eyes of 44 healthy volunteers (age, 21.7 ± 5.0 years). The mean blur rate, which is a quantitative index of the relative blood flow velocity in the retina, was measured using laser speckle flowgraphy. The vessel average of mean blur rate at the optic nerve head, intraocular pressure, systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure, mean blood pressure, heart rate, and ocular perfusion pressure were evaluated at baseline, immediately after the cold pressor test, and 10, 20, and 30 minutes after the test.

Results: Immediately after the test (0 minutes), systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure, mean blood pressure, and ocular perfusion pressure were significantly increased compared with those at baseline; however, no changes were observed at 10, 20, and 30 minutes after the test. In contrast, intraocular pressure, heart rate, and the vascular mean blur rate values at the optic nerve head did not change throughout the course of the study.

Conclusions: Sympathetic hyperactivity induced by the cold pressor test increased systemic circulatory dynamics, but not retinal circulatory hemodynamics, suggesting the involvement of vascular autoregulation.