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Fundus Photography as a Convenient Tool to Study Microvascular Responses to Cardiovascular Disease Risk Factors in Epidemiological Studies
Published on: October 22, 2014
[Application of a method for the early detection of diabetic retinopathy in Primary Health Care]
M J Sender Palacios1, M Maseras Bover, M Vernet Vernet
1Centro de Atención Primaria Terrassa Nord. Unidad Docente de Medicina Familiar y Comunitaria del Consorci Sanitari de Terrassa. Barcelona. Spain. sdireccioctn@csdt.es
Patients And Methods:
An ophthalmic examination was performed in 1,495 diabetic patients by means of a photographic method with a non-mydriatic retinal (Ffo-CNM) camera (with inclusion of 81.5% of the total diabetic population in our area attended in three primary care centers in Terrasa, Barcelona.
Results:
The prevalence of diabetic retinopathy known prior to the study was 15% (n = 218). With the application of the Ffo-CNM method the prevalence increased up to 28% (p = 0.0001). The diagnoses obtained were: normal fundoscopic appearance (bilateral), 61% (n = 908), DR without maculopathy, 22% (n = 334); DR with maculopathy, 5% (n = 75); severe DR or preproliferative DR, 0.1% (n = 1), and proliferative DR, 0.7% (n = 10). The fundus was not visible in 11% (n = 167) of patients, mainly because of darkness refractory miosis (48%) and media opacity (43%). Thirty-nine percent of examined patients were referred to the referral Ophthalmology department either because DR or non-visible eye fundus.
Conclusions:
The use of Ffo-CNM enhances the ophthalmoscopic examination in the diabetic population given the simplicity of the technique and its accessibility with the corresponding increase in the number of diagnoses of DR. Likewise, it improves the care quality to the diabetic patient and also the reationalization of patient referral to the ophthalmologic centers.
