Efficacy comparison of multipoint and single point scanning panretinal laser photocoagulation in non-proliferative diabetic retinopathy treatment

BACKGROUND Non-proliferative diabetic retinopathy(NPDR)poses a significant challenge in diabetes management due to its microvascular changes in the retina.Laser photocoagulation,a conventional therapy,aims to mitigate the risk of progressing to proliferative diabetic retinopathy(PDR).AIM To compare the efficacy and safety of multi-spot vs single-spot scanning panretinal laser photocoagulation in NPDR patients.METHODS Forty-nine NPDR patients(86 eyes)treated between September 2020 and July 2022 were included.They were randomly allocated into single-spot(n=23,40 eyes)and multi-spot(n=26,46 eyes)groups.Treatment outcomes,including bestcorrected visual acuity(BCVA),central macular thickness(CMT),and mean threshold sensitivity,were assessed at predetermined intervals over 12 months.Adverse reactions were also recorded.RESULTS Energy levels did not significantly differ between groups(P>0.05),but the multi-spot group exhibited lower energy density(P<0.05).BCVA and CMT improvements were noted in the multi-spot group at one-month posttreatment(P<0.05).Adverse reaction incidence was similar between groups(P>0.05).CONCLUSION While energy intensity and safety were comparable between modalities,multi-spot scanning demonstrated lower energy density and showed superior short-term improvements in BCVA and CMT for NPDR patients,with reduced laser-induced damage.

Effect of focal laser photocoagulation in eyes with mild to moderate non-proliferative diabetic retinopathy

AIM：To report the effect of focal laser photocoagulation on both the severity of hard exudates（HEs） and the rate of disease progression in eyes with mild to moderate non-proliferative diabetic retinopathy（NPDR）.METHODS： We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of 33 patients（60 eyes） who had been diagnosed with mild to moderate NPDR between January 2006 and December 2012.The patients were divided into 2 groups：Group A（38 eyes in 20 patients treated using focal laser photocoagulation） and Group B（treated without laser photocoagulation）.We also reviewed the best corrected visual acuity measurements,and the fundus photographs taken at both baseline and follow-up visits. RESULTS： In Group A,HE severity grade had decreased significantly from baseline to the final visit（P 〈0.05）,but this was not the case in Group B（P =0.662）.The cumulative probabilities of retinopathy progression at 5y were 26% in Group A and 30% in Group B.KaplanMeier survival curves showed no significant difference between the groups with regard to retinopathy progression（P =0.805）.CONCLUSION： Focal laser photocoagulation reduced the levels of HEs in eyes with mild to moderate NPDR.However,the treatment was not able to decelerate the progression of DR.

Reproducibility of macular perfusion parameters in non-proliferative diabetic retinopathy patients by two different OCTA sweep modes

·AIM:To assess the reproducibility of macular perfusion parameters in non-proliferative diabetic retinopathy(NPDR)patients measured by different examiners and two different sweep modes of optical coherence tomography angiography(OCTA).·METHODS:Ninety-eight(98 eyes)patients with NPDR were included in this study.All participates were performed three times using Cirrus OCTA with Angiography 3×3 mm^(2)and 6×6 mm^(2)sweep mode by two examiners.The macular foveal avascular zone(FAZ)and vessel density(VD)in the superficial retinal layer(SRL)were measured.The reproducibility of the measurements was evaluated with intraclass correlation coefficients(ICC)and coefficient of variation(CoV).·RESULTS:The intra-mode ICCs of Angiography 3×3 mm^(2)and 6×6 mm^(2)sweep mode were 0.957 to 0.959 and 0.964 to 0.977,respectively;and the inter-mode ICCs were 0.962 to 0.970.The intra-examiner ICCs of macular perfusion parameters were>0.950;and the inter-examiner ICCs were0.928 to 0.969.All CoVs were<1.0%.·CONCLUSION:Cirrus OCTA can measure macular perfusion parameters in NPDR patients with excellent reproducibility.The measurements of FAZ and VD in the SRL determined by Angiography 3×3 mm^(2)and 6×6 mm^(2)sweep mode are highly consistent and both sweep modes are suitable for macular perfusion parameters measurement.

Prevalence of diabetic retinopathy, proliferative diabetic retinopathy and non-proliferative diabetic retinopathy in Asian T2DM patients: a systematic review and Metaanalysis

AIM: To investigate the pooled prevalence of diabetic retinopathy(DR), proliferative DR(PDR) and nonproliferative DR(NPDR) in Asian type 2 diabetes mellitus(T2 DM) patients. METHODS: We performed a systematic search online search using PubMed, EMBASE, Web of Science, the Cochrane Library, and China WeiPu Library to identify eligible studies that reported the prevalence of DR, PDR and NPDR in Asian T2 DM patients. Effect size(ES) with 95% confidence interval(CI) was used to evaluate the prevalence of DR, PDR and NPDR in Asian T2 DM patients, respectively. RESULTS: There were 41 references and 48 995 T2 DM patients involved in this study. The prevalence of DR, PDR, and NPDR was 28%, 6%, and 27% in T2 DM patients, respectively; while the prevalence of PDR and NPDR in DR patients was 17% and 83%, respectively. Subgroup analysis showed that prevalence of DR in T2 DM patients from Singaporean, Indian, South Korean, Malaysian, Asian, and Chinese was 33%, 42%, 16%, 35%, 21% and 25%, respectively. In T2 DM patients with NPDR from Indian, South Korean, Malaysian, Asian, Chinese, higher prevalence was found than that in PDR patients(45% vs 17%, 13% vs 3%, 30% vs 5%, 23% vs 2% and 22% vs 3%), as well as in DR patients(74% vs 26%, 81% vs 19%, 86% vs 14%, 92% vs 8% and 85% vs 15%). The prevalence of PDR in T2 DM from India was higher than patients fromother locations of Asia, and the same results were also observed in NPDR patients. CONCLUSION: In either T2 DM Asian patients or DR patients, NPDR is more common than PDR. Based on our results, we should pay more attention to NPDR screening and management in T2 DM patients, and we also recommend suitable interventions to prevent its progression.

Association of macular pigment optical density with early stage of non-proliferative diabetic retinopathy in Chinese patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus

AIM：To detect the association between macular pigment optical density（MPOD）,which reflects the antioxidant ability of retina,and diabetic retinopathy（DR）and to investigate the correlated factors of MPOD.METHODS： Totally 435 subjects of urban Chinese were recruited to the study and divided into 3 groups： non-diabetes mellitus controls（NDM）,diabetic patients without retinopathy（DWR）,and patients with early stage of non-proliferative diabetic retinopathy（DR）.Demographic and lifestyle characteristics were ascertained by questionnaire.A food-frequency questionnaire,general physical and ophthalmic examinations were completed for all participants.MPOD was measured by heterochromatic flicker photometry.Foveal thickness was measured by optical coherence tomography.The difference of MPOD among 3 groups was analyzed by analysis of covariance.The correlation analyses of MPOD with the candidate influence factors were assessed using the generalized estimating equations（GEE） model.RESULTS： Of the 435 participants,34 could not perform the MPOD measurements.Final analysis included 401 subjects,including 48 were in DR group,134 in DWR group,and 219 in NDM group.MPOD was not significantly different among DR（0.49 ±0.21）,DWR（0.45 ±0.21）,and NDM（0.49±0.17） groups（P=0.24） after adjustment for fasting plasma glycemia,central foveal thickness,green vegetables,Chinese wolfberry,carotene and vitamin E.For all the 401 participants included,MPOD was positively associated with central foveal thickness（E=0.0007,P=0.001）,Chinese wolfberry（E=0.0345,P=0.01）,and green vegetables（E=0.0596,P〈0.001） intake.CONCLUSION： The data suggest that MPOD level is not statistically significantly influenced by the onset of diabetes or early stage of DR in the studied population.MPOD level is positively associated with thicker central foveal thickness and higher intake of foods containing carotenoids.

Characterisation of human non-proliferative diabetic retinopathy using the fractal analysis

· AIM: To investigate and quantify changes in the branching patterns of the retina vascular network in diabetes using the fractal analysis method.·METHODS: This was a clinic-based prospective study of 172 participants managed at the Ophthalmological Clinic of Cluj-Napoca, Romania, between January 2012 and December 2013. A set of 172 segmented and skeletonized human retinal images, corresponding to both normal(24 images) and pathological(148 images)states of the retina were examined. An automatic unsupervised method for retinal vessel segmentation was applied before fractal analysis. The fractal analyses of the retinal digital images were performed using the fractal analysis software Image J. Statistical analyses were performed for these groups using Microsoft Office Excel2003 and Graph Pad In Stat software.·RESULTS: It was found that subtle changes in the vascular network geometry of the human retina are influenced by diabetic retinopathy(DR) and can be estimated using the fractal geometry. The average of fractal dimensions D for the normal images(segmented and skeletonized versions) is slightly lower than the corresponding values of mild non-proliferative DR(NPDR) images(segmented and skeletonized versions).The average of fractal dimensions D for the normal images(segmented and skeletonized versions) is higher than the corresponding values of moderate NPDR images(segmented and skeletonized versions). The lowestvalues were found for the corresponding values of severe NPDR images(segmented and skeletonized versions).· CONCLUSION: The fractal analysis of fundus photographs may be used for a more complete understanding of the early and basic pathophysiological mechanisms of diabetes. The architecture of the retinal microvasculature in diabetes can be quantitative quantified by means of the fractal dimension.Microvascular abnormalities on retinal imaging may elucidate early mechanistic pathways for microvascular complications and distinguish patients with DR from healthy individuals.

Optical coherence tomography angiography assessment of 577 nm laser effect on severe non-proliferative diabetic retinopathy with diabetic macular edema

AIM:To quantitatively evaluate the effect of the combined use of 577-nm subthreshold micropulse macular laser(SML)and multi-point mode pan retinal laser photocoagulation(PRP)on severe non-proliferative diabetic retinopathy(NPDR)with central-involved diabetic macular edema(CIDME)using optical coherence tomography angiography(OCTA).METHODS:In this observational clinical study,86 eyes of 86 NPDR patients with CIDME who underwent SML and PRP treatment were included.Images were obtained 1 d before laser and post-laser(1 d,1 wk,1,3,and 6 mo)using AngioV ue software 2.0.Best corrected visual acuity(BCVA,LogM AR),foveal avascular zone area(FAZ),choriocapillary flow area(Ch F),parafoveal vessel density(PVD),capillary density inside disc(CDD),peripapillary capillary density(PCD),macular ganglion cell complex thickness(m GCCT),central macular thickness(CMT),and subfoveal choroidal thickness(ChT)were compared between pre-and post-laser treatment.RESULTS:BCVA remained stable during 6 mo postlaser therapy(pre-laser vs 6 mo post-laser:0.53±0.21 vs 0.5±0.15,P>0.05).PVD,ChF,ChT,CMT,and mGCCT significantly increased 1 d post-laser therapy[pre-laser vs 1 d post-laser:superficial PVD(%),40.51±3.42 vs 42.43±4.68;deep PVD(%),42.66±3.67 vs 44.78±4.52;ChF,1.72±0.21 vs 1.9±0.12 mm^2;ChT,302.45±69.74 vs 319.38±70.93μm;CMT,301.65±110.78 vs 320.86±105.62μm;m GCCT,105.71±10.72 vs 115.46±9.64μm;P<0.05].However,PVD,ChF and ChT decreased to less than baseline level at 6 mo postlaser therapy(pre-laser vs 6 mo post-laser:superficial PVD(%),40.51±3.42 vs 36.32±4.19;deep PVD(%),42.66±3.67 vs 38.76±3.74;Ch F,1.72±0.21 vs 1.62±0.09 mm^2;Ch T,302.45±69.74 vs 289.61±67.55μm;P<0.05),whereas CMT and mG CCT decreased to baseline level at 6 mo postlaser therapy(CMT,301.65±110.78 vs 297.77±90.23μm;m GCCT,105.71±10.72 vs 107.05±11.81μm;P>0.05).Moreover,FAZ continuously increased while CDD and PCD continuously decreased in 6 mo after laser therapy.CMT and ChT had a significant positive correlation with ChF and PVD in most post-laser stages.CONCLUSION:During a 6-month follow-up period after combined use of SML and PRP therapy,BCVA remained stable and there was a decreased trend in macular edema.Blood flow increased at 1 d post-laser therapy and reduced at 6 mo post-laser therapy.

Influencing factors for peripheral and posterior lesions in mild non-proliferative diabetic retinopathy--the Kailuan Eye Study

AIM:To explore the influencing factors of diabetes type 2 patients with mild non-proliferative diabetic retinopathy(NPDR)in the Kailuan area of Tangshan,Hebei Province,China.METHODS:In this non-interventional,retrospective study,683 patients with type 2 diabetes were included in the Kailuan Diabetic Retinopathy Study involving participants with diabetes in the community-based longitudinal Kailuan Study.Based on the undilated ultrawide field(200°;UWF)images and partial dilated digital fundus images,the diabetic retinopathy(DR)of the surveyed population was graded.Interobserver agreement was estimated by using Cohen’s Kappa statistics.The main outcome indicators included gender,age,weight,height,body mass index,blood pressure,circumferences of neck,waist and hip,current smoking,levels of fasting plasma glucose(FPG),hypersensitive C-reactive protein,creatinine,and cholesterol,etc.According to different lesions’locations of patients with mild NPDR,logistic regression models were used to estimate the odds ratios(ORs)and their 95%Cls of each risk factor.RESULTS:The study group of 683 patients included 570 males and 113 females.The mean age of the patients was62.18±9.41 y.Compared with dilated fundus examinations,there was fair agreement with the level of DR identified on UWF images in 63.91%of eyes(k=0.369,95%CI,0.00-0.00).Detected by UWF images,there were 98 patients with mild NPDR having peripheral retinal lesions,35 patients with mild NPDR having posterior lesions,44 patients with mild NPDR whose lesions were detected both in and out the standard two fields area,and 336 patients with non obvious DR.Parameters that conferred a statistically significant increased risks for mild NPDR with having peripheral retinal lesions were neck circumstance(OR,1.124;95%CI,1.044-1.211),and with posterior lesions were FPG(OR,1.052;95%CI,1.007-1.099).CONCLUSION:UWF is an effectiveness means of DR screening.Moreover,it is necessary to evaluate peripheral diabetic retinal lesions which can help to estimate the severity of DR.The phenomenon that nonuniform and inhomogeneous distribution of DR lesions has been found.And the influencing factors in mild NPDR are differing by different lesions’locations.

Fenofibrate for the prevention of progression of non-proliferative diabetic retinopathy:review,consensus recommendations and guidance for clinical practice

The prevalence of diabetic retinopathy(DR),and associated morbidity is high in the Asia-Pacific region.Emerging evidence suggests a potential role for fenofibrate in the prevention of progression of DR,especially in patients with cardiovascular risk,and pre-existing mild-to-moderate DR.Fenofibrate has also been found to reduce maculopathy,and the need for laser treatment in these patients.Considering these benefits of fenofibrate,a group of experts from the fields of endocrinology and ophthalmology convened in May 2017,to discuss on the the mechanism of action,and clinical efficacy of fenofibrate in DR.The findings from key clinical studies on fenofibrate in DR were reviewed by the experts,and consensus statements were derived to define the role of fenofibrate in the prevention and treatment of DR.The statements were rated based on the GRADE criteria.An algorithm was also developed for the screening and treatment of DR in patients with type 2 diabetes(T2D),and the place of fenofibrate was defined in the algorithm.The expert recommendations,and the algorithm provided in this review will serve as a guide to the clinicians to reconsider the adjunctive use of fenofibrate for preventing the progression of DR in selected T2D patients.

Interconnections between diabetic corneal neuropathy and diabetic retinopathy:diagnostic and therapeutic implications

Diabetic corneal neuropathy and diabetic retinopathy are ocular complications occurring in the context of diabetes mellitus.Diabetic corneal neuropathy refers to the progressive damage of corneal nerves.Diabetic retinopathy has traditionally been considered as damage to the retinal microvasculature.However,growing evidence suggests that diabetic retinopathy is a complex neurovascular disorder resulting from dysfunction of the neurovascular unit,which includes both the retinal vascular structures and neural tissues.Diabetic retinopathy is one of the leading causes of blindness and is frequently screened for as part of diabetic ocular screening.However,diabetic corneal neuropathy is commonly overlooked and underdiagnosed,leading to severe ocular surface impairment.Several studies have found that these two conditions tend to occur together,and they share similarities in their pathogenesis pathways,being triggered by a status of chronic hyperglycemia.This review aims to discuss the interconnection between diabetic corneal neuropathy and diabetic retinopathy,whether diabetic corneal neuropathy precedes diabetic retinopathy,as well as the relation between the stage of diabetic retinopathy and the severity of corneal neuropathy.We also endeavor to explore the relevance of a corneal screening in diabetic eyes and the possibility of using corneal nerve measurements to monitor the progression of diabetic retinopathy.

Treatment effects of captopril on non-proliferative diabetic retinopathy

Background Diabetic retinopathy （DR） is one of the most common complications of diabetes.Angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor is thought to play an important role in preventing and treating retinal diseases in animal models of DR.The aim of the present study was to investigate the role of angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor （ACEI,captopril） in the treatment of patients with non-proliferative DR.Methods Three hundred and seventeen type 2 diabetic patients （88.05% of participants） without or with mild to moderate non-proliferative retinopathy were randomly divided into captopril group （n=202） and placebo group （n=115）.All subjects received 24-month follow-up.General clinical examinations,including blood pressure and glycated hemoglobin,as well as comprehensive standardized ophthalmic examinations were performed.Color fundus photography and optical coherence tomography （OCT） were used to grade diabetic retinopathy and detect macular edema respectively.Results The levels of blood pressure and glycated hemoglobin in the two groups of patients remained within the normal range during the entire follow-up and no significant difference was found between the initial and last visits,suggesting that ACEI drugs play a protective role on the DR patients independent of its anti-blood pressure role.DR classification showed that 169 eyes （83.66%） remained unchanged and the DR grade of 33 eyes （16.34%） increased in captopril group,while 84 eyes （73.04%） remained unchanged and the grade of 31 eyes （26.96%） increased in placebo group （P=0.024）.Captopril treatment improved macular edema in 55.45% eyes,which was significantly higher than the 37.39% improvement in placebo group （P=0.002）.No significant difference was found in the visual acuity between the two groups （P=0.271）.Conclusion Captopril can improve or delay the development of DR and macular edema,which can be used in the early treatment of DR patients with type 2 diabetic mellitus.

Conjunctival impression cytology in non-proliferative and proliferative diabetic retinopathy

AIMTo examine the integrity of the ocular surfaces of subjects with and without diabetes with no conjunctival and dry eye signs and symptoms and compare conjunctival impression cytology findings in diabetics with non-proliferative and proliferative diabetic retinopathy.

Scheme Based on Multi-Level Patch Attention and Lesion Localization for Diabetic Retinopathy Grading

Early screening of diabetes retinopathy(DR)plays an important role in preventing irreversible blindness.Existing research has failed to fully explore effective DR lesion information in fundus maps.Besides,traditional attention schemes have not considered the impact of lesion type differences on grading,resulting in unreasonable extraction of important lesion features.Therefore,this paper proposes a DR diagnosis scheme that integrates a multi-level patch attention generator(MPAG)and a lesion localization module(LLM).Firstly,MPAGis used to predict patches of different sizes and generate a weighted attention map based on the prediction score and the types of lesions contained in the patches,fully considering the impact of lesion type differences on grading,solving the problem that the attention maps of lesions cannot be further refined and then adapted to the final DR diagnosis task.Secondly,the LLM generates a global attention map based on localization.Finally,the weighted attention map and global attention map are weighted with the fundus map to fully explore effective DR lesion information and increase the attention of the classification network to lesion details.This paper demonstrates the effectiveness of the proposed method through extensive experiments on the public DDR dataset,obtaining an accuracy of 0.8064.

Application of non-mydriatic fundus photography-assisted telemedicine in diabetic retinopathy screening

BACKGROUND Early screening and accurate staging of diabetic retinopathy(DR)can reduce blindness risk in type 2 diabetes patients.DR’s complex pathogenesis involves many factors,making ophthalmologist screening alone insufficient for prevention and treatment.Often,endocrinologists are the first to see diabetic patients and thus should screen for retinopathy for early intervention.AIM To explore the efficacy of non-mydriatic fundus photography(NMFP)-enhanced telemedicine in assessing DR and its various stages.METHODS This retrospective study incorporated findings from an analysis of 93 diabetic patients,examining both NMFP-assisted telemedicine and fundus fluorescein angiography(FFA).It focused on assessing the concordance in DR detection between these two methodologies.Additionally,receiver operating characteristic(ROC)curves were generated to determine the optimal sensitivity and specificity of NMFP-assisted telemedicine,using FFA outcomes as the standard benchmark.RESULTS In the context of DR diagnosis and staging,the kappa coefficients for NMFPassisted telemedicine and FFA were recorded at 0.775 and 0.689 respectively,indicating substantial intermethod agreement.Moreover,the NMFP-assisted telemedicine’s predictive accuracy for positive FFA outcomes,as denoted by the area under the ROC curve,was remarkably high at 0.955,within a confidence interval of 0.914 to 0.995 and a statistically significant P-value of less than 0.001.This predictive model exhibited a specificity of 100%,a sensitivity of 90.9%,and a Youden index of 0.909.CONCLUSION NMFP-assisted telemedicine represents a pragmatic,objective,and precise modality for fundus examination,particularly applicable in the context of endocrinology inpatient care and primary healthcare settings for diabetic patients.Its implementation in these scenarios is of paramount significance,enhancing the clinical accuracy in the diagnosis and therapeutic management of DR.This methodology not only streamlines patient evaluation but also contributes substantially to the optimization of clinical outcomes in DR management.

Non-linear relationship between age and subfoveal choroidal thickness in Chinese patients with proliferative diabetic retinopathy

BACKGROUND No study has investigated the change regularity between age and subfoveal choroidal thickness(SFCT)in proliferative diabetic retinopathy(PDR).AIM To investigate the relationship between the SFCT and age in Chinese patients with PDR.METHODS This was a cross-sectional retrospective study.The participants were hospitalized individuals with type 2 diabetes who underwent vitrectomy for PDR.Contralateral eyes that met the criteria were included in the study.All necessary laboratory tests were performed at the time of admission.Central macular thickness(CMT)and SFCT were two quantitative assessments made using enhanced depth imaging optical coherence tomography.CMT was measured automatically and SFCT was measured manually with digital calipers provided by the Heidelberg Eye Explorer software.RESULTS The final analysis included a total of 234 individuals with PDR.The average age was 55.60 years old±10.03 years old,and 57.69%of the population was male.Univariate analysis revealed a significant negative connection between age and SFCT in patients with PDR[β=-2.44,95%confidence interval(95%CI):-3.46 to-1.42;P<0.0001].In the fully adjusted model,the correlation between SFCT and age remained steady(β=-1.68,95%CI:-2.97 to-0.39;P=0.0117).Spline smoothing showed that the relationship between SFCT and age in patients with PDR was non-linear,with an inflection point at 54 years of age.CONCLUSION Our findings suggest that age is a key determinant of choroidal thickness.The non-linear link between SFCT and age in PDR patients should be taken into account.

DeepSVDNet:A Deep Learning-Based Approach for Detecting and Classifying Vision-Threatening Diabetic Retinopathy in Retinal Fundus Images

Artificial Intelligence(AI)is being increasingly used for diagnosing Vision-Threatening Diabetic Retinopathy(VTDR),which is a leading cause of visual impairment and blindness worldwide.However,previous automated VTDR detection methods have mainly relied on manual feature extraction and classification,leading to errors.This paper proposes a novel VTDR detection and classification model that combines different models through majority voting.Our proposed methodology involves preprocessing,data augmentation,feature extraction,and classification stages.We use a hybrid convolutional neural network-singular value decomposition(CNN-SVD)model for feature extraction and selection and an improved SVM-RBF with a Decision Tree(DT)and K-Nearest Neighbor(KNN)for classification.We tested our model on the IDRiD dataset and achieved an accuracy of 98.06%,a sensitivity of 83.67%,and a specificity of 100%for DR detection and evaluation tests,respectively.Our proposed approach outperforms baseline techniques and provides a more robust and accurate method for VTDR detection.

Risk evaluation for diabetic retinopathy in Chinese renalbiopsied type 2 diabetes mellitus patients

AIM:To investigate diabetic retinopathy(DR)prevalence in Chinese renal-biopsied type 2 diabetes mellitus(T2DM)patients with kidney dysfunction,and to further evaluate its relationship with diabetic nephropathy(DN)incidence and the risk factors for DR development in this population.METHODS:A total of 84 renal-biopsied T2DM patients were included.Fundus and imaging examinations were employed for DR diagnosis.Demographic information and clinical measures along with renal histopathology were analyzed for comparisons between the DR and non-DR groups.Risk factors on DR development were analyzed with multiple logistic regression.RESULTS:DR prevalence was 50%in total.The incidences of DN,non-diabetic renal disease(NDRD)and mixed-type pathology were 47.6%,19.0%and 33.3%in the DR group respectively,while 11.9%,83.3%and 4.8%in the non-DR group.Systolic blood pressure,ratio of urinary albumin to creatine ratio,urinary albumin,24-hours urinary protein,the incidence and severity of DN histopathology were found statistically increased in the DR group.Multiple logistic regression analysis showed histopathological DN incidence significantly increased the risk of DR development[odds ratio(OR)=21.664,95%confidential interval(CI)5.588 to 83.991,P<0.001 for DN,and OR=45.475,95%CI 6.949 to 297.611,P<0.001 for mixed-type,respectively,in reference to (NDRD)],wherein DN severity positively correlated.CONCLUSION:Renal histopathological evidence indicates DN incidence and severity increases the risk of DR development in Chinese T2DM patients inexperienced of regular fundus examinations.

TCERG1L hypermethylation is a risk factor of diabetic retinopathy in Chinese children with type 1 diabetes

●AIM:To identify the differential methylation sites(DMS)and their according genes associated with diabetic retinopathy(DR)development in type 1 diabetes(T1DM)children.●METHODS:This study consists of two surveys.A total of 40 T1DM children was included in the first survey.Because no participant has DR,retina thinning was used as a surrogate indicator for DR.The lowest 25%participants with the thinnest macular retinal thickness were included into the case group,and the others were controls.The DNA methylation status was assessed by the Illumina methylation 850K array BeadChip assay,and compared between the case and control groups.Four DMS with a potential role in diabetes were identified.The second survey included 27 T1DM children,among which four had DR.The methylation patterns of the four DMS identified by 850K were compared between participants with and without DR by pyrosequencing.●RESULTS:In the first survey,the 850K array revealed 751 sites significantly and differentially methylated in the case group comparing with the controls(|Δβ|>0.1 and Adj.P<0.05),and 328 of these were identified with a significance of Adj.P<0.01.Among these,319 CpG sites were hypermethylated and 432 were hypomethylated in the case group relative to the controls.Pyrosequencing revealed that the transcription elongation regulator 1 like(TCERG1L,cg07684215)gene was hypermethylated in the four T1DM children with DR(P=0.018),which was consistent with the result from the first survey.The methylation status of the other three DMS(cg26389052,cg25192647,and cg05413694)showed no difference(all P>0.05)between participants with and without DR.●CONCLUSION:The hypermethylation of the TCERG1L gene is a risk factor for DR development in Chinese children with T1DM.

Retinal vascular morphological characteristics in diabetic retinopathy: an artificial intelligence study using a transfer learning system to analyze ultra-wide field images

AIM:To investigate the morphological characteristics of retinal vessels in patients with different severity of diabetic retinopathy(DR)and in patients with or without diabetic macular edema(DME).METHODS:The 239 eyes of DR patients and 100 eyes of healthy individuals were recruited for the study.The severity of DR patients was graded as mild,moderate and severe non-proliferative diabetic retinopathy(NPDR)according to the international clinical diabetic retinopathy(ICDR)disease severity scale classification,and retinal vascular morphology was quantitatively analyzed in ultra-wide field images using RU-net and transfer learning methods.The presence of DME was determined by optical coherence tomography(OCT),and differences in vascular morphological characteristics were compared between patients with and without DME.RESULTS:Retinal vessel segmentation using RU-net and transfer learning system had an accuracy of 99%and a Dice metric of 0.76.Compared with the healthy group,the DR group had smaller vessel angles(33.68±3.01 vs 37.78±1.60),smaller fractal dimension(Df)values(1.33±0.05 vs 1.41±0.03),less vessel density(1.12±0.44 vs 2.09±0.36)and fewer vascular branches(206.1±88.8 vs 396.5±91.3),all P<0.001.As the severity of DR increased,Df values decreased,P=0.031.No significant difference between the DME and non-DME groups were observed in vascular morphological characteristics.CONCLUSION:In this study,an artificial intelligence retinal vessel segmentation system is used with 99%accuracy,thus providing with relatively satisfactory performance in the evaluation of quantitative vascular morphology.DR patients have a tendency of vascular occlusion and dropout.The presence of DME does not compromise the integral retinal vascular pattern.

Construction and validation of a neovascular glaucoma nomogram in patients with diabetic retinopathy after pars plana vitrectomy

BACKGROUND Neovascular glaucoma(NVG)is likely to occur after pars plana vitrectomy(PPV)for diabetic retinopathy(DR)in some patients,thus reducing the expected benefit.Understanding the risk factors for NVG occurrence and building effective risk prediction models are currently required for clinical research.AIM To develop a visual risk profile model to explore factors influencing DR after surgery.METHODS We retrospectively selected 151 patients with DR undergoing PPV.The patients were divided into the NVG(NVG occurrence)and No-NVG(No NVG occurrence)groups according to the occurrence of NVG within 6 months after surgery.Independent risk factors for postoperative NVG were screened by logistic regression.A nomogram prediction model was established using R software,and the model’s prediction accuracy was verified internally and externally,involving the receiver operator characteristic curve and correction curve.RESULTS After importing the data into a logistic regression model,we concluded that a posterior capsular defect,preoperative vascular endothelial growth factor≥302.90 pg/mL,glycosylated hemoglobin≥9.05%,aqueous fluid interleukin 6(IL-6)≥53.27 pg/mL,and aqueous fluid IL-10≥9.11 pg/mL were independent risk factors for postoperative NVG in patients with DR(P<0.05).A nomogram model was established based on the aforementioned independent risk factors,and a computer simulation repeated sampling method was used to internally and externally verify the nomogram model.The area under the curve(AUC),sensitivity,and specificity of the model were 0.962[95%confidence interval(95%CI):0.932-0.991],91.5%,and 82.3%,respectively.The AUC,sensitivity,and specificity of the external validation were 0.878(95%CI:0.746-0.982),66.7%,and 95.7%,respectively.CONCLUSION A nomogram constructed based on the risk factors for postoperative NVG in patients with DR has a high prediction accuracy.This study can help formulate relevant preventive and treatment measures.