Abstract
Purpose: :
The Finnish Register of Visual Impairment is a national register regulated by the Act and Decree on National Personal Records kept under the Health Care System. Health Care Providers are, under the above-mentioned Act, responsible to forward to the Register such information on persons with visual impairment (VI). In order to evaluate the changes in VI due to diabetic retinopathy seen during the past 30 years of this register was statistically analyzed
Methods: :
Statistical analysis of the visually impaired persons in the register (n= 42.626 of which 16.747 are a live) in Finland (population 5,3 million) was analyzed in three 10 year cohorts in order to get information on the age at the time of the notification of VI, the severity of the impairment and the mean age of the death of the patients. VI is determined on the basis of WHO definition. WHO classes 3-5 are regarded as blind. VI due to proliferative (PDR) and non-proliferative (NPDR) DR was analyzed separately.
Results: :
Altogether data on 4.087 patients whose primary cause for their VI was registered as diabetic retinopathy was analyzed. The median age of at the time of notification of VI for the three cohorts was 39, 62 and 59 years in the PDR group and 71, 73 and 73 in the NPDR group respectively. The proportion of blind persons was 42%, 22% and 15% in the PDR group and 10%, 9% and 4% in the NPDR group respectively. The age of death of the three cohorts was 54, 72 and 68 years in PDR group and 76, 79 and 78 years in the NPDR group respectively.
Conclusions: :
There has been a significant change in the profile of the VI in the PDR group characterized by increased age at the time of VI notification, the severity of VI and the prolonged life expectancy that are most evident between the first and the other two ten year cohorts. The profile of VI caused by NPDR has changed only slightly.
Keywords: diabetic retinopathy • visual impairment: neuro-ophthalmological disease