Epidemiology of Diabetic Retinopathy at Eye Clinic Svjetlost Sarajevo: Two Years Retrospective Single Center Study

INTRODUCTION: Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is an important cause of blindness, and occurs as a result of long-term accumulated damage to the small blood vessels in the retina. 2.6% of global blindness can be attributed to diabetes. Disease severity was most often classified by the Early Treatment Diabetic Retinopathy Study (ETDRS) classification for DR severity. Patients are usually categorized based on the severity of DR as having mild nonproliferative diabetic retinopathy (NPDR), moderate NPDR, severe NPDR, or proliferative diabetic retinopathy (PDR). AIM: To evaluate DR status among patients at Eye Clinic Svjetlost Sarajevo , both, type 1 and type 2 DM patients who presented in our clinic at 2 years period – from June 2016 to June 2018. This is single center study. METHODS: Retrospective analysis of 753 diabetic patients that came for the first check up in our institution during those two years, 363 patients were male and 390 were female. Patients were divided in 3 groups (based on DR changes): a) No changes, b) Nonproliferative DR (with and without Diabetic macular edema–DME), c) Prolipherative DR (with and without DME + Advanced PDR). RESULTS: There were 35% of patients with no ocular changes, 41.2% had NPDR and 24% had PDR. Prevalence of DR in our study was 65.32%. Distribution of NPDR was 66.27%, and PDR was 33.73%. DME was present in 33.70% cases. In NPDR, DME was presented in 51% of the cases, while in PDR was presented in 49% of the cases. In state of advanced PDR, PDR was presented in 30.52% cases, tractional detachment and haemophtalmus in 50.20% of cases and neovascular glaucoma in 19.28%. Sixty-three patients ended up with vitroretinal surgery (8.4%) while in other studies that number is up to 3%. Out of that number 9 patients were patient with virgin eyes (14.28%). Neovascular glaucoma occurred in 19.28% of diabetics with proliferative retinopathy and 4.60% in all of diabetics. CONCLUSION: Diabetic retinopathy status of patients presenting at Eye clinic Svjetlost Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina is quite poor. There is a big need for early DR screening measures, good prevention and management of DR risk factors. Adequate and ON TIME management of DM and its vision threatening complications is of major importance.