Objectives: The objective of this study was to provide a comprehensive insight into common pathological mechanisms of diabetic retinopathy and neuropathy. Thus, we aimed at studying patients with long-standing type 2 diabetes mellitus who were prone to have detectable and gradable diabetic retinopathy and evaluate a possible association with sensitive measures of diabetic neuropathy. Subjects and methods: The population-based cohort study included patients from the Split-Dalmatia county, creating a total sample size of twenty-nine examinees. Twenty-nine adult patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus, 11 female and 18 male patients, with a diagnosis of more or equal to 1 year, were included into the study. All participants underwent a detailed screening for medical history, duration of type 2 diabetes mellitus diagnosis, duration of insulin therapy, grade of diabetic retinopathy and clinically significant macular edema, using the Diabetic Retinopathy Disease Severity Scale and International Clinical Diabetic Retinopathy Disease Severity Scale and a detailed ophthalmologic examination according to the protocol, as well as assessment of sensory-motor neuropathy and radiculopathy, using electromyographic studies with the Medelec Synergy 5 Channel EMG/EP Plinth System (Oxford Instruments Medical Ltd, U.K., 2004). Results: There was a significant strong positive correlation (r = 0.81) between sensory-motor neuropathy and diabetic retinopathy (p < 0.001). A negative, moderate (r = -0.57) correlation between the grade of diabetic retinopathy and duration of insulin therapy (years), that reached statistical significance (p = 0.02) could be established. A significant negative moderate (r = -0.53) correlation was found between the grade of diabetic sensory-motor neuropathy and duration of insulin therapy (p = 0.035). Conclusions: We found a strong correlation between diabetic retinopathy and diabetic sensory-motor neuropathy. Thus, patients presenting with diabetic retinopathy should be further questioned and investigated for diabetic sensory-motor neuropathy.

Ciljevi: Cilj ovog istraživanja je bio pružiti sveobuhvatan uvid u zajedničke patološke mehanizme dijabetičke retinopatije i neuropatije. Stoga smo proučavali pacijente s dugogodišnjim dijabetesom tipa 2 koji imaju dijabetičku retinopatiju i procijenili moguću povezanost sa senzibilnim pokazateljima dijabetičke neuropatije. Materijali i metode: Kohortno istraživanje uključivalo je bolesnike iz splitsko-dalmatinske županije, stvarajući ukupnu veličinu uzorka od 29 ispitanika. U istraživanju je uključeno 29 odraslih bolesnika s dijabetesom melitusom tipa 2 od kojih su 11 ženskog spola i 18 muškog spola, s dijagnozom više ili jednako 1 godine. Svi sudionici podvrgnuti su detaljnom pregledu povijesti bolesti, trajanja dijagnoze dijabetesa melitusa tipa 2, trajanja terapije inzulinom, stupnja dijabetičke retinopatije i klinički značajnog makularnog edema, uporabom Diabetic Retinopathy Disease Severity Scale i International Clinical Diabetic Retinopathy Disease Severity Scale, detaljnom oftalmološkom pregledu prema protokolu, kao i procjenu motorno-senzorne neuropatije i radikulopatije, korištenjem elektromiografskih metoda s Medelec Synergy 5 Channel EMG/EP Plinth System (Oxford Instruments Medical Ltd, U.K., 2004). Rezultati: Postojala je značajna pozitivna korelacija (r = 0,81) između motorno-senzorne neuropatije i dijabetičke retinopatije (P <0,001). Može se utvrditi negativna, umjerena (r = -0.57) korelacija između stupnja dijabetičke retinopatije i trajanja terapije inzulinom, koja je postigla statističku značajnost (P = 0.02). Značajna negativna umjerena (r = -0,53) korelacija pronađena je između stupnja dijabetičke motorno-senzorne neuropatije i trajanja terapije inzulinom (P = 0,035). Zaključci: Pronašli smo izraženu korelaciju između dijabetičke retinopatije i dijabetičke motorno-senzorne neuropatije. Stoga se pacijenti s dijabetičkom retinopatijom trebaju dodatno ispitivati i pregledati za dijabetičku motorno-senzornu neuropatiju.