The levels of von willebrand factor in patients with hypertensive retinopathy

Von Willebrand Faktor (vWf) is a marker of endothelial dysfunction. The pathophysiologic mechanism of hypertensive retiopathy (HR) is not fully established. Elevated blood pressure alone does not fully account for the extent of retinopathy, other pathogenic mechanisms may be involved, such as endothelial dysfunction. Therefore, this study was designed to answer the following questions; (i) Do vWf levels change in HR? (ii) Is there any relation between degree of HR and vWf levels? This study included 80 hypertensive patients with HR. The hypertensive patients were divided into two groups according to the Keith-Wagener classification. Group 1 comprised 40 patients with grade I HR, and Group 2 comprised 40 patients with grade II HR. We selected 40 healthy subjects matched for age, sex, and body mass index (BMI) for control group. The level of vWf in group 2 was significantly higher than in group 1 group (117.26±24.47 vs 104.14±20.57, p=0,017) and control group (117.26±24.47 vs 89,0±18.64, p<0,001), it was also higher in group 1 than in control group (104.14±20.57 vs 89,0±18.64, p<0,005). Also, vWf showed positive correlations with degree of HR (r = 0.284, p =0,009). Our study suggests that there is a relationship between vWf, a marker of endothelial dysfunction, and HR Key words: Von Wilebrand faktor, endothelial dysfunction, hypertension, hypertensive retinopathy, vascular complications.