Prevalence of Diabetic Retinopathy and Correlation with HbA1c in Patients Admitted in Khyber Teaching Hospital Peshawar

Abstract

Objective: To determine the prevalence of diabetic retinopathy in patients admitted in Khyber Teaching Hospital Peshawar and to correlate different stages of diabetic retinopathy with HbA1C levels.

Methodology: This cross sectional study was conducted at Department of Ophthalmology, Khyber Teaching Hospital, MTI, Peshawar from December 2019 to May 2020. All patients over the age of 15 years who were diagnosed with diabetes mellitus were included in the study while patients with cataract or retinopathy due to other pathologies were excluded. All diabetic patients were admitted through outpatient department. In the ward their blood pressures were recorded and HbA1c levels were also measured. Visual acuity (VA) was checked. Screening for diabetic retinopathy was done by a consultant ophthalmologist by Optos Ultrawide Field Imaging of retina and Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) of macula to establish stages of diabetic retinopathy and presence of diabetic macular edema respectively.

Results: A total of 103 diabetic patients were included. Their retina was photographed, viewed and analyzed. Diabetic retinopathy, irrespective of the type, was found in 69 patients with a prevalence of 66.9%. Patients with lower ranges of HbA1c (below 6%) showed no evidence of DR. The clustering of majority of patients with diabetic retinopathy with HbA1c levels of 8 to 12 %, showed a significant relationship between high blood sugar levels and severity.

Conclusion: In our study the higher frequency of retinopathy is alarming by considering it one of the leading causes of blindness in working class. It is highly recommended that routine ophthalmologic examination may be carried out along with optimal diabetic control.