The Relationship between Serum Carbonic Anhydrase I-II Autoantibody Levels and Diabetic Retinopathy in Type 1 Diabetes Patients

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the relationship between serum carbonic anhydrase I-II (CA-I and II) autoantibody levels and diabetic retinopathy (DRP) in cases with type 1 diabetes. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 37 type-1 diabetic patients, 17 with DRP (group 1) and 20 without (group 2), and 38 healthy control subjects (group 3) were included. CA-I and CA-II autoantibody levels were measured in serum samples obtained from each of the three groups and compared statistically. Additionally, the correlation between CA-I and CA-II autoantibody levels and the presence of diabetic macular edema was examined. RESULTS: Mean measured CA-I autoantibody levels were 0.145±0.072, 0.117±0.047, and 0.138±0.061 ABSU in group 1, group 2, and group 3, respectively (p=0.327). The average CA-II autoantibody levels achieved in the same groups were 0.253±0.174, 0.155±0.137, and 0.131±0.085 ABSU, respectively (p=0.005). No significant difference was obtained between the subgroups of group 1, with macular edema (n=8) and without (n=9), in terms of both CA-I and CA-II autoantibody levels (p=0.501, p=0.178, respectively). CONCLUSION: A significant correlation was observed between the development of DRP and serum CA-II autoantibody levels in type 1 diabetic cases. However, there was no correlation between the autoantibody levels and the presence of diabetic macular edema in cases with DRP.