[Lens opacity in diabetics. Prevalence and association to visual deficiency and retinopathy]

Prevalence of lens opacity (LO) and its association with visual deficiency (VD, visual capacity < 20/40) and diabetic retinopathy (DR) were identified in diabetic patients to estimate rate of patients in whom VD could be lowered by surgery and whether DR rate was higher in patients with LO.

Type 2 diabetics without prior ophthalmic examination were evaluated; rate of LO was determined and compared with those previously reported by z for rates. Patients with LO were assigned to group 1 and those without to group 2. Rates of VD and RD in each group were compared by chi2 test and odds ratio (OR).

Three hundred thirteen patients were evaluated (age range 41-87 years, mean 58.5 years) and mean diabetes duration mean was 7.8 years. LO rate was higher than expected (49%, p < 0.001): 109 patients in group 1 (53.4%) and 18 in group 2 (16.5%) had VD (p < 0.001, OR 5.59), while 46 patients in group 1 and 13 in group 2 (11.9%) had DR, which was not clinically different (p = 0.03, OR 2.15).

Presence of LO should be considered during ophthalmic evaluation in diabetics; VD could be erroneously attributed to DR, whose detection could be limited by LO. Should LO cause significant visual impairment, extraction would help improve vision if there is no DR and would help to have an adequate optic medium to follow-up and treat the latter, if it is present.