Diabetic Retinopathy in the Czech Republic

• Authors: PAŠOVÁ Petra
• Year of publication: 2014
• Type: Conference abstract
• Description: Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is a typical microvascular complication of diabetes mellitus (DM). In advanced countries it is the most frequent cause of blindness in population ages between 20 to 74 years. Small blood vessels are particularly vulnerable to damage from hyperglycaemia; direct hyperglycaemic effects on retinal cells are also likely to play a role. Risk factors are duration of DM (the most important one), poor control of disease, hypertension, nephropathy and other. The reported prevalence of DR varies substantially between studies, even amongst contemporary diabetic population in the same country. In 2012 there were reported 841 277 (8%) people with DM (398 839 men, 142 388 women) in the Czech Republic. 100 662 of them (11,97%) suffered from DR; proliferative form was reported in 25 533 cases (25,37%), 2230 (2,2%) of these patients were blind. Prevention of developing and progression of DR is realized by cooperation of diabetologists, internists, general practitioners and ophthalmologists. Diabetologists are responsible for control of DM, ophthalmologists for early detection of DR. Active screening is performed by ophthalmologists in patients with type I and type II DM immediately after setting of diagnosis; in children after 10 years. Frequency of controls is higher in case of DR (3-6 months), during pregnancy, if improvement of glycaemia is supposed (normoglyceamic re-entry phenomenon) and at the start of dialysis.