Diabetic Eye Disease

Abstract

In the year 2000, the number of patients in the United States known to have diabetic retinopathy was believed to be about 4 million. Recent National Eye Institute studies estimated that among people older than 40 years of age, there were approximately 8 million known cases in 2010 and project that the number of cases of diabetic retinopathy in the United States will most likely double over the next 40 years, to an estimated 15 million in 2050. In 2007, the estimated number of diabetics in the United States was approximately 24 million (NIDDK), yet the prevalence of undiagnosed diabetes cases was estimated to be close to 6 million people; one can assume that the numbers for undiagnosed diabetic eye disease are similarly underestimated. Diabetic retinopathy is cited as the leading cause of new cases of blindness in persons aged 20–74, and about 12% of new cases of blindness yearly are attributed to diabetes. It is believed that in 60–90% of those cases, visual loss could have been prevented with early detection and management. Despite this, it has been estimated that about one-third of US diabetic patients have never had an eye exam, and only two-thirds of those with high-risk proliferative retinopathy or clinically significant macular edema have had an ophthalmic evaluation within 2 years.