Computer-enhanced studies of diabetic retinopathy: I

A computer program designed according to the needs of clinical investigators has recently been implemented. This ambitious undertaking allows the ophthalmologist direct interfacing and control over all his data, presently 3,252 diabetic patient records, and thus harnesses his hypothesis-testing intuitions with the memory, speed, and flexibility of modern-day computers. There are three program modes: QUERY, a disease-independent language by which the clinician selects his population; SELECT, the actual computer selection, and DISPLAY: where general statistical maneuvers, relationships among disease parameters, ancillary data compilations, and printouts are performed. Being computer-independent and disease-independent, and adaptable to most needs of clinical investigators, this computer program brings a refreshingly new approach to the study of disease.