RIPLs

Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of mortality and disability in the world. Patients with cardiovascular risk factors can reduce their risk of developing adverse cardiovascular events through lifestyle modification and medications. Unfortunately for many, the disease may go undiagnosed until the occurrence of serious events such as myocardial infarction or stroke. Identifying biomarkers of subclinical ischemia can help identify patients with occult cardiovascular disease.

Our laboratory identified a novel biomarker of ischmia in the retina which we termed Retinal Ischemic Perivascular Lesions (RIPLs). RIPLs can be detected using an optical coherence tomography (OCT) scan, a non-invasive diagnostic tool commonly used in ophthalmology and optometry clinics to create images of the retina.

- The original paper published in EClinical Medicine by the Lancet.

- Real-world examples where RIPLs led to identification of occult cardiovascular disease: Ophthalmology Retina.

- Association between RIPLs and atrial fibrillation: Journal of the American Heart Association.

- Association between RIPLs and myocardial infarction in patients with coronary artery disease: Americal Jounral of Ophthalmology.

We are leading a multi-institutional collaboration to test the utility of using RIPLs to detect occult cardiovascular disease in propsective studies.

* Clinical and research fellows and medical students interested in clinical research are encouraged to apply.