The prevalence and associated factors of diabetic retinopathy in Chinese hypertensive patients newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes mellitus - A cross sectional study in 3 primary care clinics in Hong Kong

摘要

Objectives: To evaluate the prevalence and associated factors which contribute to the development of diabetic retinopathy in Chinese hypertensive patients with new onset type 2 diabetes mellitus. Design: A cross sectional study. Subjects: All Chinese hypertensive patients who were followed up at the participating clinics and developed new onset type 2 diabetes mellitus from 1st January 2012 to 31st December 2012. Main outcome measures: Prevalence of diabetic retinopathy in Chinese hypertensive patients with new onset type 2 diabetes. The associated factors of developing diabetic retinopathy. Results: 289 patients were included during the study period. 37.4% had background diabetic retinopathy in which 2.8% had maculopathy. No statistically significant association was observed between diabetic retinopathy and some known associated factors such as poor diabetic control and high blood pressure. Conclusion: In our study, more than one-third of the patients with new onset type 2 diabetes mellitus were found to have diabetic retinopathy upon diagnosis, which was higher than that reported in the general diabetic population locally or internationally. This might be explained by the fact that our selected group of hypertensive patients was a known risk factor of diabetic retinopathy. In view of the high prevalence of diabetic retinopathy and no associated factors were identified, early diabetic retinopathy assessment is important in this group of patients for timely detection and intervention.