PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Iannaccone, Alessandro
AU  - Letizia, Claudio
AU  - Pazzaglia, Sebastiano
AU  - Vingolo, Enzo M
AU  - Clemente, Giovanni
AU  - Pannarale, Mario R
TI  - Plasma endothelin-1 concentrations in patients with retinal vein occlusions
AID  - 10.1136/bjo.82.5.498
DP  - 1998 May 01
TA  - British Journal of Ophthalmology
PG  - 498--503
VI  - 82
IP  - 5
4099  - http://bjo.bmj.com/content/82/5/498.short
4100  - http://bjo.bmj.com/content/82/5/498.full
SO  - Br J Ophthalmol1998 May 01; 82
AB  - AIMS To investigate whether plasma levels of endothelin-1 (ET-1), a potent vasoconstricting peptide that is crucial in regulating retinal blood flow, were elevated in patients with retinal vein occlusion (RVO). METHODS ET-1 plasma concentrations were determined by radioimmunoassays in a double blind fashion in a group of 18 selected patients with RVO, in 20 healthy age matched non-smoking, normoglycaemic, normotensive control subjects, and in 15 patients with uncomplicated essential hypertension in the same age range. RESULTS Patients with RVO had significantly increased ET-1 plasma levels (14.22 (SD 4.6) pg/ml) compared with both normal subjects (7.90 (1.6) pg/ml; p < 0.05) and hypertensive patients (8.50 (2.9) pg/ml; p <0.05). The highest concentrations of circulating ET-1 were found in patients with RVO of the ischaemic type (16.97 (3.5) pg/ml; p < 0.01; n = 7). Systemic hypertension alone did not account for the observed increase in plasma ET-1 concentrations. CONCLUSIONS These findings raise the possibility that the increased circulating ET-1 levels in patients with RVO may be a marker of the occlusive event, thereby suggesting that ET-1 homeostasis may be relevant to RVO pathogenesis and retinal ischaemic manifestations.