The prevalence of diabetic retinopathy in recently diagnosed Type 2 diabetic patients
entering a Retinal Screening Programme.
(Presented at EASDEC meeting, Barcelona 1998)
Flatman M.F.S., Jenkins C.M., Harrison F, Glenn A. M., Greenwood
R.H.
Bertram Diabetic Eye Clinic, West Norwich Hospital, Bowthorpe Road, Norwich NR2 3TU,
Norfolk, England
Diabetic retinopathy may be present at diagnosis in
patients with Type 2 diabetes indicating that diabetes has been present but undetected for
several years. In the United Kingdom Prospective Diabetes Study (UKPDS) of 4075 newly
diagnosed patients, retinopathy was present in 21% of cases.
We have reviewed the prevalence of retinopathy in
all patients entering a community based retinal screening programme between 1990 and 1997.
Of the 7348 patients entering, 3782 (51.5%) were first photographed within 2 years of
diagnosis (Group A). The remaining 3566 (48.5%) had diabetes for more than two years
(Group B).
In the two groups the findings were:
| Normal Fundi Microaneurysms
only
Haemorrhages/Exudates/cotton wool spots/NV
Laser Treatment |
A 81.6%
4.8%
13.6%
1.0% |
B 67.6%
7.5%
24.9%
2.7% |
Thus in this large group of Type 2 diabetic patients some degree of
retinopathy was present in 18.4% of patients who were recently diagnosed. This finding is
similar to that of the UKPDS. In the Norwich Retinal Screening Programme 1% of the
recently diagnosed patients required laser treatment for sight threatening diabetic eye
disease (maculopathy and proliferative diabetic retinopathy).
These results emphasise the importance of careful eye examination in
newly diagnosed diabetic patients. |
