Blood pressure is associated with diabetic retinopathy in type 1 but not in type 2 diabetes

Abstract

The aim of this study was to investigate the role of systolic blood pressure (SBP) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) in the development of diabetic retinopathy (DR) in type 1 and type 2 diabetes and to determine the differences between these two types of diabetes. This cross-sectional study included 84 patients with type 1 diabetes (T1DM) and 107 patients with type 2 diabetes (T2DM). Ophthalmologic retinal examination included indirect slit-lamp fundoscopy, color fundus photography according to EURODIAB (EUROpe and DIABetes) protocol and optical coherence tomography. Blood pressure was measured with a mercury sphygmomanometer after a 10-minute rest period. In T1DM, DR was positively associated with SBP (p = 0.035), HbA1cmedian (p < 0.001) and hypertensive retinopathy (p < 0.001), while in T2DM DR was positively related only to HbA1cmedian (p = 0.021). Binary logistic regression analysis (no DR/DR) showed that diabetes duration and HbA1cmedian were the main predictors of DR in both types of diabetes. In contrast, SBP (OR = 1.05, p = 0.045) and hypertensive retinopathy (OR = 3.75, p < 0.001) were the main predictors/indicators of DR only in T1DM. In conclusion, blood pressure is associated with DR in type 1 but not in type 2 diabetes.

Keywords

• blood pressure
• type 1 and type 2 diabetes
• retinopathy
• risk factors