Relation of Serum and Vitreous Concentrations of Fetuin-A with Diabetic Retinopathy

BACKGROUND: Fetuin-A, a liver-derived glycoprotein, is correlated with diabetes. The aim of the present investigation was to evaluate serum and vitreous concentrations of fetuin-A in patients with diabetic retinopathy (DR). MATERIAL/METHODS: We randomly selected 224 diabetic patients and 68 control subjects for this study. RESULTS: There were markedly higher serum and vitreous fetuin-A concentrations in proliferative diabetic retinopathy (PDR) patients than in the other three groups. NPDR patients exhibited elevated vitreous fetuin-A concentrations compared with patients without DR. However, no significant differences in serum fetuin-A concentrations were observed between NPDR patients and patients without DR. In addition, there were significantly lower concentrations of serum and vitreous fetuin-A in control subjects compared with the other three groups. CONCLUSIONS: The occurrence and severity of DR is correlated with serum and vitreous fetuin-A concentrations.