Risk factors of retinopathy in type 2 diabetes mellitus at a tertiary care hospital, Bahawalpur Pakistan.

Objectives: To find out the risk factors of diabetic retinopathy in type 2 diabetes mellitus. Methodology: It was a cross-sectional study involving 300 patients of type 2 diabetes. Clinical history, relevant examination including fundoscopy and lab investigations were done. Data was analysed with SPSS 17.0. T-test and chi square/Fischer exact were applied to determine significance. Results: Mean age of the patients was 49.04 +/- 0.69 years with slight female predominance with male to female ratio of 3:4. Average duration of disease was 7.17 +/- 0.38 years. Diabetic retinopathy was diagnosed in (74, 23.9%). Mean HbA1c was 8.15% in patients with retinopathy and 8.884% in those who had no retinopathy (p=0.08). However, duration of DM, age of patients, male gender, high total cholesterol, high LDL and microalbuminuria were significantly associated with the development of retinopathy. Conclusions: Diabetic retinopathy was found in 23.9% of type 2 diabetics. It was associated with duration of disease, age at presentation, male gender, high total cholesterol, high LDL and microalbuminuria. A single high level of HbA1c was not associated with retinopathy.