Clinical Characteristics of Patients with Newly Diagnosed Diabetic Macular Edema in Turkey: A Real-Life Registry Study—TURK-DEM

Purpose. To evaluate the clinical and diagnostic characteristics of patients with newly diagnosed diabetic macular edema (DME) in Turkey in a real-life setting. Methods. A total of 945 consecutive patients (mean (SD) age: 61.3 (9.9) years, 55.2% male) with newly diagnosed DME were included. Data on patient demographics, comorbidities, ocular history, ophthalmic examination findings including type of DME, central macular thickness (CMT) via time domain (TD) and spectral domain (SD) optical coherence tomography (OCT), and planned treatments were recorded. Results. OCT (98.8%) and fundoscopy (92.9%) were the two most common diagnostic methods. Diffuse and focal DMEs were detected in 39.2% and 36.9% of cases, respectively. Laser photocoagulation (32.1%) and antivascular endothelial growth factors (anti-VEGF; 31.8%) were the most commonly planned treatments. The median CMT in the right eye was significantly greater in untreated than in treated patients [376.5 μm (range: 160–840) versus 342 μm (range: 146–999) (p = 0.002)] and in the left eye [370 μm (range: 201–780) versus 329 μm (range: 148–999) (p < 0.001)]. Conclusions. This study is the first large-scale real-life registry of DME patients in Turkey. SD-OCT and fundoscopy were the most common diagnostic methods. Laser photocoagulation and anti-VEGF therapy were the most common treatments.