Patricia's doctoral research has focused on ocular blood flow assessment. Study of retinal autoregulation is important because vascular dysfunction plays a major role in the etiology of such sight-threatening diseases as diabetic retinopathy, age related maculopathy and glaucoma. Patricia helped establish age-related normative data on retinal blood flow regulation in healthy subjects, and correlated retinal vascular changes with novel markers of peripheral vascular disease, including blood levels of cholesterol, C-reactive protein, homocysteine, fibrinogen and lipoprotein (a). The ultimate goal of her research is the development of diagnostic and monitoring procedures that allow the noninvasive assessment of the peripheral vasculature through the eye.
Left to Right: Dr. C. Wittnich, Director, CSCP and Dr. Patricia Rose