The national diabetic retinopathy laser treatment audit III. Clinical outcomes

Purpose To describe the short-term clinical outcomes for a cohort of patients undergoing first photocoagulation treatment for proliferative retinopathy or maculopathy in the United Kingdom.Method Nine-month follow-up of the Royal College of Ophthalmologists' national audit of laser treatment for diabetic retinopathy. Results For eyes with maculopathy, 9.2% had had a deterioration in visual acuity equivalent to a doubling of the visual angle and 3.3% of eyes had a visual acuity of less than 6/60 at follow-up. There had been an improvement in the macular oedema or exudate in 64.6% and 77.3% respectively. Prognostic factors for a poorer visual acuity at follow-up were worse visual acuity at baseline, the presence of diffuse (vs focal) oedema and grid (vs focal) treatment. For eyes with proliferative retinopathy, the retinal neovascularisation had regressed fully in 50.8% of cases, whilst there had been no change or a deterioration in 10.3%. A visual acuity of less than 6/60 at follow-up was present in 8.6% of eyes. There was a poor morphological outcome at follow-up (as defined by rubeosis, new tractional detachment or having had a vitrectomy) in 7.2%. Risk factors for poor morphological outcome were the presence of ‘high-risk characteristics‘, female sex and the presence of concurrent maculopathy at baseline. Regression of neovascularisation was associated with greater areas of retinal ablation at the initial treatment session. Although some eyes with proliferative retinopathy appeared to be undertreated initially compared with DRS and ETDRS protocols, some of these eyes did respond to lower amounts of treatment.Conclusion For maculopathy, poorer outcome was related to worse visual acuity at baseline, diffuse (vs focal) maculopathy, and grid treatment. For proliferative retinopathy, poorer outcome was related to ‘high-risk characteristics‘ and coexistence of maculopathy at baseline, and improvement was related to larger areas of ablation. The relationship of poor outcome with worse initial disease argues for earlier detection of retinopathy.

[1]  Proliferative diabetic retinopathy: treatment with xenon-arc photocoagulation. Interim report of multicentre randomised controlled trial. , 1977, British medical journal.

[2]  Curtis L. Meinert,et al.  Photocoagulation treatment of proliferative diabetic retinopathy: the second report of diabetic retinopathy study findings. , 1978, Ophthalmology.

[3]  A. Patz,et al.  Macular edema--an overlooked complication of diabetic retinopathy. , 1973, Transactions - American Academy of Ophthalmology and Otolaryngology. American Academy of Ophthalmology and Otolaryngology.

[4]  J. Sparrow,et al.  The National Diabetic Retinopathy Laser Treatment Audit. I. Maculopathy , 1998, Eye.

[5]  H. Cheng Multicentre trial of xenon-arc photocoagulation in the treatment of diabetic retinopathy. A Randomized controlled study. Interim report. , 1975, Transactions of the ophthalmological societies of the United Kingdom.

[6]  R. Olk,et al.  Quantitation of retinal ablation in proliferative diabetic retinopathy. , 1995, American journal of ophthalmology.

[7]  B. Doft,et al.  Retinopathy risk factor regression after laser panretinal photocoagulation for proliferative diabetic retinopathy. , 1984, Ophthalmology.

[8]  Early photocoagulation for diabetic retinopathy. ETDRS report number 9. Early Treatment Diabetic Retinopathy Study Research Group. , 1991, Ophthalmology.

[9]  E. Kohner,et al.  Xenon arc photocoagulation for the treatment of diabetic maculopathy. Interim report of a multicentre controlled clinical study. , 1980, The British journal of ophthalmology.

[10]  S. Lucas,et al.  Peripheral retinal ablation in the treatment of proliferative diabetic retinopathy: a three-year interim report of a randomised, controlled study using the argon laser. , 1977, The British journal of ophthalmology.

[11]  G. Blankenship Diabetic macular edema and argon laser photocoagulation: a prospective randomized study. , 1979, Ophthalmology.

[12]  P. Desai The national cataract surgery survey: II clinical outcomes , 1993, Eye.

[13]  R. Olk Modified grid argon (blue-green) laser photocoagulation for diffuse diabetic macular edema. , 1986, Ophthalmology.

[14]  J. Sparrow,et al.  The National Diabetic Retinopathy Laser Treatment Audit. II. Proliferative retinopathy , 1998, Eye.

[15]  G. Aylward,et al.  Extensive argon laser photocoagulation in the treatment of proliferative diabetic retinopathy. , 1989, The British journal of ophthalmology.

[16]  Diabetes Care and Research in Europe: The Saint Vincent Declaration , 1990, Diabetic medicine : a journal of the British Diabetic Association.

[17]  F L Ferris,et al.  Photocoagulation for diabetic macular edema. , 1987, Archives of ophthalmology.

[18]  S. Riaskoff Photocoagulation treatment of proliferative diabetic retinopathy. , 1981, Bulletin de la Societe belge d'ophtalmologie.

[19]  F. Ferris,et al.  Macular edema in Diabetic Retinopathy Study patients. Diabetic Retinopathy Study Report Number 12. , 1987, Ophthalmology.