A DIABETIC-RETINOPATHY SCREENING-PROGRAM AS A STRATEGY FOR BLINDNESS PREVENTION

The most frequent cause of preventable blindness in adults, in the dev eloped world, is diabetic retinopathy (DR), The early treatable phase of this complication is clinically silent, In order to institute effec tive laser photocoagulation and prevention of blindness, timely detect ion is crucial, Consequently there is a need for periodic funduscopic examinations of all diabetics, Due to the high prevalence of DM in Mex ico most of the primary care facilities are limited, We present the re sults of a DR screening program (DRSP) using a mobile unit equipped wi th a fundus photography camera, parked outside of a clinic, We report the prevalence of the various stages of DR and clinical characteristic s observed in this population as well as our experience working in suc h an environment, The study period was from September 1 to December 22 , 1995. All the diabetics that presented for care to the clinic were i dentified and all other persons were invited to participate, A total o f 231 participants were invited (112 men, 119 women), Non-stereo fundu s photos of two retinal fields (macula and optic disk centered) were t aken with technique and classification according to international stan dards, Response rate to the invitation was 95.3%. Mean age was 62.4 +/ - 13 years and 63.5 +/- 10 years and duration of diabetes was 12.3 +/- 10.1 years and 11.0 +/- 7.5 years for men and women, respectively, DR was detected in 38% of the cases, of these only 5.6% have received tr eatment, DR was uncovered in 84.5% of the cases and was associated wit h duration of diabetes (p <0.001 in men and p = 0.04 in women) and hyp erglycemia (in men p <0.005, only), DR has a high prevalence in this p opulation and can be detected through a screening program which reveal s undiagnosed high risk DR in an efficient, and standardized manner.