The Link Between Diabetes and Eye Health: Managing Diabetic Retinopathy

Abstract

Diabetes is considered one of the most important factors that greatly affect eye health, as diabetic retinopathy is the most common and prominent cause of vision loss for patients.

Objective:

This study aimed to assess the health outcomes of visual functions for diabetes patients.

Method:

A cross-sectional study was conducted to examine the outcomes of diabetic patients and their relationship to eye health. Demographic data were collected from different hospitals in Iraq, which recruited 113 patients for a period between April 5th, 2022, and November 16th, 2023. All participants between the ages of 30 and 70 years were included. NEI-VFQ-25 questionnaire data related to asking questions, which included 16 questions in examining eye examinations of participating patients, were identified.

Results:

The results showed that the age of the patients was (60 - 70) years, and the clinical data found that the 68 men who participated in the study were higher than the 45 female participants. These results showed that 64.60% of patients were hypertensive, and 53.10% were smokers. Moreover, this study recorded patient data for diabetic patients, where 59.29% had type 2 diabetes, and the duration of diabetes, which ranged between (10-20) years, was the majority at 70.80%. Diastolic blood pressure was (80.14±8.85). This study showed through the NEI-VFQ-25 questionnaire that it assessed the patient's health in relation to eye diseases, and most of the items included general health 0.75, general vision 0.71, peripheral vision 0.78, and color vision 0.74.

Conclusion:

The type of diabetic retinopathy affects visual function negatively. This study showed that the severity of diabetes and lack of awareness increases the visual impairment of patients.