Factors associated with diabetic retinopathy screening and regular eye checkup practice among diabetic patients attending Felege Hiwot Specialized Hospital

AIM: To identify associated factors of diabetic retinopathy(DR) screening and ey e check-up practice among diabetes mellitus(DM) patients attending Felege Hiwot Specialized Hospital.METHODS: An institution-based cross-sectional study was applied from October 4, 2019 to January 12, 2020 at Felege Hiwot Specialized Hospital. A systematic random sampling technique was used to recruit participants and an interviewer-administered questionnaire was employed to collect the data. The collected data were entered into Epi Info version 7 and transposed to SPSS version 24 for statistical analysis. Descriptive statistics were executed and associated factors were identified using binary logistic regression. The strength of association between the independent and the outcome variable was determined using an adjusted odds ratio(AOR) with 95% confidence interval(CI). RESULTS: Four hundred and six participants partake with a response rate of 95.7% and a mean age of 47±11.5y. The magnitude of DR screening was 308(75.9%, 95%CI: 71.5%, 79.8%). Higher educational level(AOR=3.25;95%CI: 1.40, 8.78), good knowledge of DR(AOR=2.50;95%CI: 1.55, 4.46), and family history of DM(AOR=2.15;95%CI: 1.41,3.85) were significantly associated with DR screening. On the other side, rural residence [AOR=3.11(1.89, 5.02)] and undesirable attitudes toward DR [AOR=5.65(3.14, 8.76)] were significantly associated with poor regular eye checkup practice.CONCLUSION: Most of the participants are screened for DR. Higher education, family history, and good knowledge are associated with DR screening. In addition, rural residence and undesirable attitudes toward DR are associated with regular eye checkup practice.

Awareness of eye complications and prevalence of retinopathy in the first visit to eye clinic among type 2 diabetic patients

AIM:To assess the awareness of eye complications and the prevalence of retinopathy,in the first visit to eye clinic,among type 2 diabetic patients attending a tertiary medical centre in Kuala Lumpur,Malaysia.METHODS:An investigator-administered questionnaire was given to 137 patients with diabetes undergoing first time eye screening in the eye clinic.This was followed by a detailed fundus examination by a senior ophthalmologist to assess for presence of retinopathy.RESULTS:Almost 86% of respondents were aware of diabetic eye complications,especially in patients who had achieved tertiary educational level(96.3%).The majority of the patients(78.8%) were referred by their physicians and only 20.4% came on their own initiative.Many of the patients(43.8%) did not know how frequent they should go for an eye check-up and 72.3% did not know what treatments were available.Lack of understanding on diabetic eye diseases(68.6%) was the main barrier for most patients for not coming for eye screening earlier.Despite a high level of awareness,only 21.9% had recorded HbA1c level of <6.5% while 31.4% were under the erroneous assumption of having a good blood sugar control.A total of 29.2% had diabetic retinopathy in their first visit eye testing.CONCLUSION:In the present study,29.2% of type 2 diabetic patients had retinopathy in their first time eye testing.Although the awareness of diabetic eye complications was high among first time eye screening patients,the appropriate eye care-seeking behavior was comparatively less and should be rectified to prevent the rise of this sight threatening eye disease.

Descriptive assessment on diabetic retinopathy screening in an awareness programme in Malaysia

AIM:To determine the prevalence of diabetic retinopathy(DR)among diabetic patients at the primary health clinics in Selangor,Malaysia.METHODS:All diabetic patients were screened in Retinal Disease Awareness Programme(RDAP)and those who had significant DR changes were referred to the hospital for further management.Descriptive analyses were done to determine the prevalence of DR and sociodemographic characteristics among patients with diabetic.Univariate and multivariable analysis using Logistic regression were performed to find association and predictor factors in this screening.RESULTS:A total of 3305 patients aged 40y and above were screened for DR.Ofthe patients screened,9%patients were found to have DR and other visual complication such as maculopathy(0.9%),cataract(4.8%)and glaucoma(0.4%).The mean age of patients without retinopathy was 57.82±8.470y and the mean age of patients with DR was 63.93±9.857y.About 61.5%of the patients screened were aged below 60y and 38.5%were aged 60y and above.Majority of the patients screened were women 58.5%and Malay in the age group of 50-59y,while 27%were aged 60-69y.Significant association were found between age,sex,race,visual loss and DR.CONCLUSION:Although the prevalence of DR among patients is not alarming,effective interventions need to be implemented soon to avert a large burden of visual loss from DR.