Abstract
BackgroundDiabetic retinopathy (DR) is a serious microvascular complication of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). The aim of this retrospective study was to reveal the risk factors for the severity of DR in individuals with T2DM. Demographic data and biochemical parameters were collected and analyzed.MethodsA total of 518 individuals with type 2 diabetes were included. These individuals were classified into three groups according to the severity of diabetic retinopathy: non-diabetic retinopathy (NDR) group (N = 172), non proliferative diabetic retinopathy (NPDR) group (N = 184), and proliferative diabetic retinopathy (PDR) group (N = 162). Demographic and clinical measurement data of the individuals were collected by reviewing medical records and direct interview. The demographic data and biochemical parameters between groups were compared using Student’s t-test. Moreover, the factors related to severity of diabetic retinopathy were identified by using the multivariate logistic regression analysis.ResultsNo significant difference in age, gender, body mass index (BMI), and diabetes duration was found among these three groups. The serum uric acid (SUA), total cholesterol (TC), low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-c), homocysteine, and urinary albumin levels were significantly higher in the NPDR and PDR group than those in the NDR group (P < 0.05). The individuals in the PDR group had obviously higher levels of SUA, homocysteine, and urinary albumin than individuals in the NPDR group (P < 0.05). The multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that high SUA, homocysteine, TC, LDL-c, and urinary albumin levels were associated with more serious diabetic retinopathy (OR > 1; P < 0.05).ConclusionThe concentrations of SUA and urinary albumin are associated with the severity of DR in individuals with T2DM.
Highlights
Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is a serious microvascular complication of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM)
According to the results of multivariate logistic regression analysis, we identified that the severity of diabetic retinopathy was associated with high serum uric acid (SUA) level (odds ratio (OR) = 1.108; 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.098–1.163; P = 0.032), high homocysteine level (OR = 1.021; 95% CI = 1.040–1.264; P = 0.041), high total cholesterol (TC) level (OR = 1.117; 95% CI = 1. 189–2.354; P = 0.037), high low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-c) level (OR = 1.026; 95% CI = 1.034– 1.452; P = 0.026) and high urinary albumin level (OR = 1.003; 95% CI = 1.049–1.198; P = 0.043) (Table 3)
The multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that high SUA (OR = 1.108; 95% CI = 1.098–1.163; P = 0.032) and homocysteine (OR = 1.021; 95% CI = 1.040–1.264; P = 0.041) levels were associated with the severity of diabetic retinopathy
Summary
Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is a serious microvascular complication of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). The aim of this retrospective study was to reveal the risk factors for the severity of DR in individuals with T2DM. T2DM has high risk of causing macrovascular complications (i.e. cardiovascular disease) and microvascular complications (such as diabetic retinopathy, diabetic nephropathy and diabetic neuropathy) because of hyperglycaemia and insulin resistance syndrome [4]. DR could be divided into background and proliferative stage according to the severity [6]. The people with background stage DR had lesions on the eye vasculature layer and vision lost would be caused if there is fluid in the central portion of the eyes [7].
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