ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVES: To establish the prevalence of diabetic retinopathy (RD) diagnosed after non-mydriatic retinography and to evaluate its utility as a screening test in the area of San Sebastián. METHODS: A prospective study including 2,444 diabetic patients sent by their primary attention doctors and/or their endocrinologists. All patients underwent non-mydriatic retinography in the central 45 degrees; visual acuity was explored, as well as IOP through non-contact tonometry. The retinographies and information obtained were sent to our hospital and were revised by an ophthalmologist from the Retina Department. RESULTS: Fifteen point zero two (15.02%) of the patients suffered from diabetes and were under dietary treatment, 62.55% suffered from non-insulin-dependant diabetes, and 22.43% suffered from insulin-dependant diabetes. The prevalence of diabetic retinopathy was 9.36%; 5.27% mild non-proliferative diabetic retinopathy (DR); 2.21% moderate-non-proliferative DR; 1.67 % severe non-proliferative DR; and 0.05% proliferative-diabetic retinopathy. Eight point two two (8.22%) of the sample studied was diagnosed with ocular hypertension. CONCLUSIONS: We observed a low prevalence of DR in our sample. Use of non-mydriatic retinopathy in telemedicine plays an important role in the early diagnosis of diabetic retinopathy and it can be applied to other ophthalmic diseases.
