Diabetic retinopathy: a review

In the United States, diabetic retinopathy is the leading cause of new blindness in those of occupational age. We present an overview of risk factors, including renal disease, uncontrolled blood pressure, pregnancy, poor glucose control, elevated glycosylated hemoglobin, duration of disease, and age at time of diagnosis; pathogenesis, addressing the involvement of aldose reductase, nonenzymatic glycosylation of proteins, vasoproliferative factors, ischemia and vasodilation, systemic growth factors, and platelets and blood viscosity; pathology, including nonproliferative, preproliferative, and proliferative retinopathy; and the management of this condition.