RESUMO
Diabetic retinopathy （DR） is one of the most important microvascular complications of diabetes mellitus， which can lead to blindness in severe cases. Both traditional drug therapy and surgical treatment have certain limitations. Literature review indicates that the main pathogenesis of DR is related to inflammation and apoptosis induced by oxidative stress， and changes in growth factors， hormones， etc. Monomer of traditional Chinese medicine （chlorogenic acid）， single medicine （Panax notoginseng， Typha angustifolia， Pueraria montana root， Matrimony vine， etc.）， prescription （modified Buyang huanwu decoction and Liujunzi decoction， modified Xuefu zhuyu decoction， Simiaoyong’an decoction， etc.） and Chinese patent medicine （Ligustrazine injection， Furong tongmai capsule， Qiju dihuang pill， etc.） can provide beneficial supplement for the treatment of DR. Its mechanism of action mainly involves antioxidant， anti-inflammatory， anti-apoptosis， decreasing the expression of vascular endothelial growth factor， improving hormone levels and so on.