The eyes are the mirror of the body! A lesser known fact is that the retina is the only place in the human body where blood vessels can be examined directly. This means that, in addition to eye diseases, signs of other vascular diseases (e.g. stroke, heart disease, high blood pressure and diabetes) can be seen early on with retinophotography. Early signs of these conditions may appear on the retina long before vision changes or general symptoms are noticed.

Pathologies that can be diagnosed and tracked with retinophotography:

• Diabetes: Incipient microvascular changes in diabetic retinopathy often help us to refer the patient to the diabetologist for the first time.
• HypertensionClassic signs of hypertensive retinopathy are narrowing of blood vessels with arteriovenous narrowing, flail hemorrhages and retinal exudates that are warning signs of stroke.
• GlaucomRetinophotography can reveal incipient damage to the optic nerve caused by too much intraocular pressure compressing the blood vessels at this level.
• Age-related macular degeneration (AMD)): retinal imaging exposes signs of AMD, such as the presence of drusen, haemorrhages or macular pigmentary changes. This pathology is the main cause of vision loss in patients over 50, so retinophotography is a basic investigation in this age group.
• Retinal detachment: in patients who experience flashes of light, bright stars or floating spots that obstruct vision, retino-photography allows us to quickly locate a retinal detachment. This condition is a medical emergency that requires prompt treatment to prevent permanent vision loss, so early detection is essential.
• Cancer: retinal imaging can significantly increase patients' chances of successfully treating certain cancers. High-resolution images of the retina can reveal early signs of certain cancers such as choroidal malignant melanoma, which gives the retina a slightly pigmented appearance in its early stages. When these signs are seen early, patients may undergo further investigations to confirm the diagnosis and may be referred immediately for treatment to prevent the cancer from spreading to other parts of the body.
• Benign tumours: with the help of retinophotography, we can diagnose and keep under observation other types of benign formations such as hemangioma, choroidal pigment nevus, optic disc melanocytoma, osteoma, astrocytoma, hamartoma or congenital pigment epithelial hypertrophy.
• Retinal vascular occlusionsCentral retinal vein occlusion (CRVO), central retinal artery occlusion (CRAO) and partial vascular occlusions are medical emergencies that require a multidisciplinary approach and immediate treatment both locally, ophthalmologically and in general, cardiovascular.
• Parasitic infections: Ocular parasitic infections are considered significant causes of vision loss worldwide and the common parasites that mainly infect ocular tissues are Toxoplasma gondii, Toxocara canis and Toxocara cati, genus Plasmodium, Leishmania donovani, Onchocerca volvulus, Cysticercus cellulosae.
• Viral infections: DNA (herpes) and RNA (rubella, rubella) viruses can cause particularly severe viral retinitis. Most viral retinitis is associated with systemic disease, people with compromised immunity are more likely than healthy people to develop this type of lesion, and retinophotography helps us to refer the patient to the infectious disease doctor for specific general treatment.
• Bacterial infections: Retinitis from ocular tuberculosis is not a common condition in the general population but it has a high morbidity and a visual prognosis often reserved! Other bacteria that can cause retinal damage are those of the group Bartonella ("cat-scratch disease") or Borrelia (Lyme disease).