Fluorescein angiography appears safe for elderly, hypertensive patients

Elderly and hypertensive patients did not experience higher rates of adverse reactions than younger patients when undergoing fluorescein angiography, a study found.

Fayyaz Musa, MD, of Leeds University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, and colleagues reviewed the adverse reactions experienced by 358 patients who underwent fundus fluorescein angiography, focusing on adverse reactions among hypertensive and elderly patients.

The researchers found an 11.2% overall adverse reaction rate, primarily nausea (80%). No patients died, and none experienced anaphylaxis or cardiac arrest, the study authors said.

Systolic or diastolic hypertension did not increase the risk of adverse reaction. Patients with a baseline systolic blood pressure over 160 were significantly less likely to experience an adverse reaction compared to those with a systolic blood pressure below 160 (P = .04), according to the study authors.

The researcher did not find a statistical correlation between adverse reactions and age.

"Therefore, these patients should not be denied an important diagnostic procedure that may improve their quality of life purely because of hypertension or age," the study authors concluded.

The study is published in the December issue of Acta Ophthalmologica Scandinavica.