Effects of Change in Blood Pressure on Retinal Capillary Rarefaction in Patients With Arterial Hypertension

Inclusion Criteria: * Men and Women aged ≥ 18 years * Signed informed consent * Apart from hypertensive retinopathy, normal ophthalmic findings * Non-Smokers * Patients with initially diagnosed or pre-existing mild to moderate primary arterial hypertension (systolic office blood pressure ≥ 140 mmHg and/or diastolic office blood pressure ≥ 90 mmHg) * Planned initiation of antihypertensive medication or planned adaption of antihypertensive medication by the Department of Cardiology * Subject agrees to perform regular blood pressure self-measurements and to document blood pressure values in a diary Exclusion Criteria: * Participation in a clinical trial in the three weeks preceding the study * Blood donation in the three weeks preceding the study * Symptoms of a clinically relevant illness in the three weeks preceding the study * History of family history of epilepsy * Secondary hypertension (e.g.: hyperaldosteronism, pheochromocytoma, renal artery stenosis, renal parenchymal diseases, Cushing-syndrome, Coarctatio aortae) * History of hypertensive encephalopathy or intracerebral bleeding * Diabetes mellitus Type 1 or Type 2 * Pregnant or breast-feeding women * Women of childbearing potential (neither menopausal, nor hysterectomized, nor sterilized) not using effective contraception