title: The application of retinal fundus camera imaging in dementia: A systematic review.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The ease of imaging the retinal vasculature, and the evolving evidence suggesting this microvascular bed might reflect the cerebral microvasculature, presents an opportunity to investigate cerebrovascular disease and the contribution of microvascular disease to dementia with fundus camera imaging.
  
  
  METHODS
  A systematic review and meta-analysis was carried out to assess the measurement of retinal properties in dementia using fundus imaging.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Ten studies assessing retinal properties in dementia were included. Quantitative measurement revealed significant yet inconsistent pathologic changes in vessel caliber, tortuosity, and fractal dimension. Retinopathy was more prevalent in dementia. No association of age-related macular degeneration with dementia was reported.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Inconsistent findings across studies provide tentative support for the application of fundus camera imaging as a means of identifying changes associated with dementia. The potential of fundus image analysis in differentiating between dementia subtypes should be investigated using larger well-characterized samples. Future work should focus on refining and standardizing methods and measurements.
authors.affiliation: Centre for Clinical Brain Sciences, College of Medicine and Veterinary Medicine, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK.
authors.forename: Sarah
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: McGrory
authors.affiliation: Centre for Clinical Brain Sciences, College of Medicine and Veterinary Medicine, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK; Anne Rowling Regenerative Neurology Clinic, College of Medicine and Veterinary Medicine, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK.
authors.forename: James R
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Cameron
authors.affiliation: Centre for Clinical Brain Sciences, College of Medicine and Veterinary Medicine, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK.
authors.forename: Enrico
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Pellegrini
authors.affiliation: College of Medicine and Veterinary Medicine, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK.
authors.forename: Claire
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Warren
authors.affiliation: Centre for Clinical Brain Sciences, College of Medicine and Veterinary Medicine, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK.
authors.forename: Fergus N
authors.initials: FN
authors.lastname: Doubal
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK; Department of Psychology, Centre for Cognitive Ageing and Cognitive Epidemiology, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK.
authors.forename: Ian J
authors.initials: IJ
authors.lastname: Deary
authors.affiliation: Centre for Clinical Brain Sciences, College of Medicine and Veterinary Medicine, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK.
authors.forename: Baljean
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Dhillon
authors.affiliation: Centre for Clinical Brain Sciences, College of Medicine and Veterinary Medicine, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK; Department of Psychology, Centre for Cognitive Ageing and Cognitive Epidemiology, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK; Scottish Imaging Network: A Platform for Scientific Excellence (SINAPSE) Collaboration, Edinburgh, UK.
authors.forename: Joanna M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Wardlaw
authors.affiliation: VAMPIRE Project and Computer Vision and Image Processing Group School of Science and Engineering (Computing), University of Dundee, Dundee, UK.
authors.forename: Emanuele
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Trucco
authors.affiliation: Centre for Clinical Brain Sciences, College of Medicine and Veterinary Medicine, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK; VAMPIRE Project and Edinburgh Clinical Research Facility, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK.
authors.forename: Thomas J
authors.initials: TJ
authors.lastname: MacGillivray
keywords: Alzheimer's disease; Dementia; Fundus; Retinal imaging; Retinal vasculature