[The influence of refraction on diabetic retinopathy (author's transl)]

Two groups of patients with diabetic retinopathy were tested by refraction. Patients with advanced retinopathy and those with early diabetic retinopathy had about the same propor-tion of refractive errors as the normal population. The only important difference was seen in middle- and high myopic eyes, which occurred less frequently when diabetic retinopathy was present. Illustrated from 4 cases of high myopia the inhibitory influence of diabetic retinopathy on the formation of shortsightedness is shown. Possible causes for this are discussed.