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Published on: January 12, 2024
Is diabetic retinopathy an independent risk factor for ischemic stroke?
Ning Cheung1, Sophie Rogers, David J Couper
1Centre for Eye Research Australia, University of Melbourne, 32 Gisborne Street, Victoria 3002, Australia.
Background And Purpose:
The relationship between diabetic retinopathy and ischemic stroke is uncertain and examined in this study.
Methods:
A population-based, prospective cohort study of 1617 middle-aged persons with diabetes. Diabetic retinopathy signs were ascertained from retinal photographs, and incident ischemic stroke events were prospectively identified and validated.
Results:
Over an average follow-up of 7.8 years, there were 75 ischemic stroke events. After adjustment for age, gender, race, center, 6-year mean arterial blood pressure, anti-hypertensive treatment use, fasting glucose, insulin treatment, duration of diabetes, high-density lipoprotein and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels and cigarette smoking status, diabetic retinopathy was associated with an increased risk of ischemic stroke (hazard rate ratio, 2.34; 95% CI, 1.13 to 4.86).
Conclusions:
Diabetic retinopathy predicts incident ischemic stroke in people with diabetes, independent of other risk factors.
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