MUMBAI (TIP): Researchers from a Spanish university have developed a new computer software to diagnose cardiovascular risk on the basis of an eye scan. Doctors from Valenica University have started studying the blood vessel network around the retina of low-birth weight babies.

They scan the fundus of the retina to diagnose whether the child will develop hypertension or heart diseases in adult age. “We want to know the caliber and the branching angle of the retinal vessels because that information helps us to understand how the blood is circulating,” said Empar Lurbe, head of the paediatrics unit of the university hospital.

The measurement of the branching angles and the characteristics of the vessels’ caliber -if they are wider or narrower or if the branching angle is bigger or smaller- tells if the child who has a different branching angle could have an increase in blood pressure over the years.

Lurbe said children with fetuses with growth retardation are those who are at a greater risk of developing cardiovascular diseases, such as hypertension or type 2 diabetes. Because of this, we are using the measurements to see if the branching angles of the vessels of children who have intrauterine growth retardation are different than those who do not,” the doctor added.