Objective
Aortic diseases are an important cause of cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. Thoracic aortic aneurysms (TAA) is a potentially life-threatening disorder if not diagnosed before the development of the dissection and rupture. Pupillometry is a simple, non-invasive technique that provides valuable data concerning the balance of both branches of autonomous nervous system. The aim of the present study was to assess pupillary autonomic functions in patients with small TAA (sTAA).
Methods
A total of 19 patients with sTAA were selected from our medical records between January 2013 to December 2013. Aortic aneurysm is defined as a localized or diffuse dilatation of more than 50% normal diameter of the aorta. All patients had dilatation at ascending aortic segment and all were ≤45mm. We compared the dynamic pupillometric data of these patients with 20 volunteers matched for age and sex. The images of both eyes are acquired and processed in real time: 30 images per second (standard) or 200 images per second (with the fast camera option). The average response to successive visual stimuli (light flashes) is quantified with the following parameters: latency and duration of contraction and dilatation; initial, minimum, maximum, and mean pupil diameter; amplitude of contraction; contraction and dilatation velocity; and percent pupil contraction (PPC).
Methods
A total of 19 patients with sTAA were selected from our medical records between January 2013 to December 2013. Aortic aneurysm is defined as a localized or diffuse dilatation of more than 50% normal diameter of the aorta. All patients had dilatation at ascending aortic segment and all were ≤45mm. We compared the dynamic pupillometric data of these patients with 20 volunteers matched for age and sex. The images of both eyes are acquired and processed in real time: 30 images per second (standard) or 200 images per second (with the fast camera option). The average response to successive visual stimuli (light flashes) is quantified with the following parameters: latency and duration of contraction and dilatation; initial, minimum, maximum, and mean pupil diameter; amplitude of contraction; contraction and dilatation velocity; and percent pupil contraction (PPC).
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