Publication:

Understanding different causes of Blindness with focus on Diabetic Retinopathy patients: a cross-sectional study

Background National program for control of blindness and visual impairment is a centrally sponsored programme with the goal of reducing the prevalence of blindness. The data regarding the beneficiaries can help in planning for preventable causes of blindness. Diabetic retinopathy caused by diabetes mellitus is one such important cause that can be prevented with proper control of blood glucose levels and regular screening for DR; possible with appropriate knowledge and awareness among patients about the relationship between DM and Retinopathy.

Methods A cross-sectional study was carried out comprising two components: desk review of patients (N=1072) including all the beneficiaries of NPCBVI during August-2019 and October-2019 and personal interviews of DR patients (N=62) enrolled during same duration using semi-structured interviews at Tertiary care hospital in Waghodia, Gujarat.

Results Out of 1072 beneficiaries of NPCBVI, 61.4% were diagnosed with ocular disorders/diseases; 8% had Blindness and 92% had Visual impairment. Highest visual impairment was found due to uncorrected refractive error (62.75%) and highest blindness due to cataract (27.3%). Among 62 DR patients, mean random blood sugar levels was 238 mg/dl (SD±87.80) and majority (85.5%) had HbA1c levels in diabetic range. Out of all DR patients, 77.4% were unaware about the relationship between diabetes mellitus and retinopathy.

Conclusions Highest visual impairment and blindness were found due to uncorrected refractive errors and cataract respectively. Majority of DR patients showed poor long term control of blood sugar levels noted by high HBA1c levels and presented a noteworthy lack of awareness regarding retinopathy caused by DM.