Longitudinal study of a cohort of people with diabetes screened by the Exeter Diabetic Retinopathy Screening Programme.
OBJECTIVE
To evaluate the long-term outcome of a cohort of people with diabetes screened by the Exeter Diabetic Retinopathy Screening Programme.


METHODS
The cohort comprised of diabetic patients from nine market town General Practices around Exeter who first attended the diabetic retinopathy screening programme in 1992. Screening was carried out by a combination of dilated fundoscopy by a screening technician and a single 45 degrees Polaroid photograph of each eye. The prevalence of diabetic retinopathy at the baseline, the incidence of sight threatening diabetic retinopathy (STDR) in the next two rounds of screenings, and the long-term visual outcome are described.


RESULTS
The cohort consisted of 775 patients (104 Type I, 517 Type II non-insulin-requiring and 154 Type II insulin-requiring). The mean age was 72.1 years (15-100), with mean disease duration of 13.0 years (1-79). Baseline prevalence was as follows: background retinopathy: 21.4%, proliferative: 2.8%, clinically significant macular oedema: 6.1%. The incidence of proliferative disease was 2.20% and 2.25% respectively in the next two rounds of screening (P > 0.05, chi2 test). The incidence of clinically significant macular oedema was also constant over next two rounds of screening, at 4.79% and 5.18% respectively (P > 0.05, chi2 test). Ninety-five (12.3%) patients were deceased and a further 179 (23%) patients were lost to follow-up by the third round. Only two patients with newly diagnosed STDR suffered deterioration of visual acuity to 6/60 or worse as a result of diabetic retinopathy.


CONCLUSIONS
The incidence of STDR remained constant throughout the period of screening, reflecting the chronic progressive nature of the disease. Significant numbers of patients were lost to follow-up. Screening seemed effective in preserving vision in those patients with newly diagnosed STDR.
Ling
R
R
West of England Eye Unit, Royal Devon & Exeter Hospital, Exeter, Devon, UK. roland@linghl.fsnet.co.uk
Ramsewak
V
V
Taylor
D
D
Jacob
J
J
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D015331:Cohort Studies; D003930:Diabetic Retinopathy / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D004739:England / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D005451:Fluorescein Angiography / Q000379:methods; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D008403:Mass Screening / Q000379:methods*; D008875:Middle Aged; D010781:Photography / Q000379:methods; D015995:Prevalence; D011379:Prognosis; D012017:Referral and Consultation; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D014792:Visual Acuity