Prevalence of diabetes and diabetic retinopathy in population aged ≥50 years in Virudhunagar, Tamil Nadu
In the district Virudhunagar, diabetic retinopathy (DR) survey was conducted along with the RAAB survey using the RAAB6+DR methodology. All the known diabetics and newly diagnosed diabetics (random blood sugar ≥ 200mg/dl) aged 50 years and above were assessed for DR. Scottish classification was used for DR grading. It was found that prevalence of total diabetics in population aged ≥50 years was 21.2%.
Among the diabetics the prevalence of diabetic retinopathy was 19.6%. Prevalence of maculopathy was 3.8% and that of any retinopathy or maculopathy was 19.6%. Prevalence of sight threatening DR was 2.2%.
Table: Prevalence of known and new diabetes in population aged ≥50 years in Virudhunagar, Tamil Nadu
Diabetics Examined
Male(N=1003)
Female(N=1738)
Total(N=2741)
n
%
n
%
n
%
Known diabetes
163
16.3
216
12.4
379
13.8
Newly diagnosed diabetes
83
8.3
118
6.8
201
7.3
Total
246
24.5
334
19.2
580
21.2
Table: Gender & Age wise Prevalence of any diabetic retinopathy among diabetics population aged ≥50 years in Virudhunagar, Tamil Nadu
Demographic Variable
Diabetic assessed for DR
DR cases
Prevalence %
Gender
Male
176
37
21.0
Female
269
50
18.6
Age Group
50 – 59
186
25
13.4
60 – 69
171
44
25.7
70 – 79
73
15
20.5
80+
15
3
20.0
All ages
445
87
19.6
Table: Prevalence of diabetic retinopathy, maculopathy and sight threatening diabetic retinopathy (Scottish classification) among diabetics population aged ≥50 years in Virudhunagar, Tamil Nadu