Journal of Clinical and Experimental Ophthalmology
Open Access

Abstract

Three Years Follow-Up Incidence of Retinopathy, In Type 1 Diabetic Patients, In a Population-Based Screening Program with Digital Retinal Photographs

Álvarez-Ramos Pablo, Jiménez-Carmona Soledad, Alemany-Márquez Pedro, Mayoral Eduardo, Santos-Sánchez Vanessa and Aguilar-Diosdado Manuel

Purpose: To determine the incidence of diabetic retinopathy (DR) and risk factors associated with its development in a cohort of patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus (DM 1), after three years of follow up, with annual retinal photograph by teleophthalmological means.
Methods: Prospective cohort study of DM 1 patients, medically assisted in the Puerta del Mar Hospital Endocrinology Unit between 2009 and 2010, without DR, or with any degree of retinopathy that requires no treatment. Patients undergo endocrinological study. Control of blood glucose, glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c), blood pressure, dyslipidemia, renal dysfunction and smoking were recorded. Annually, three pictures are taken in each eye with a non-mydriatic digital retinal camera and are included in the intranet tool of the Andalusian Integral Diabetes Plan for remote analysis and grading. The cumulative incidence of DR after three years of follow up and the relationship between the recorded risk factors and the onset of DR is analyzed
Results: One hundred and forty-three patients were included in the study. The incidence of RD at 3 years followup was 23.1%. Baseline HbA1c showed a clear trend towards significance to the development of the RD (p=0.06). The duration of diabetes and other considered risk factors showed no significant values in the statistical analysis.
Conclusions: This study provides the first results of cumulative incidence of DR in a cohort of DM 1 patients, followed-up through the Tele-ophthalmology tool of the Integral Diabetes Plan of Andalusia, which was 23.1%. Only baseline HbA1c showed a trend toward significant association in the development of RD.