Prevalence of Diabetic Retinopathy in Public Health Care Units of São José do Rio Preto-SP-Brazil

Objective: To determine the prevalence of DR in public health care units of São José do Rio Preto-SP-Brazil. Material and Methods: Population-based cross-sectional study that included 710 diabetic patients. All patients underwent an eye examination by indirect ophthalmoscope to check for any signs of DR. Participants were also interviewed and examined to determine their demographic characteristics, medical conditions and the realization of previous fundoscopic eye examination. Statistical studies were done with t-Student test, Fisher test or chi-square test. Results: Among 710 screened patients, 112 had some degree of diabetic retinopathy, and the overall standardized prevalence of any retinopathy was 16,3%, including 90 (80,4%) with non-proliferative and (22) 19,6% with proliferative diabetic retinopathy. Conclusions: The prevalence of DR in São José do Rio Preto is 16,3%. The main risk factors associated with DR were time of disease and glicemic control. Type of DM and nephropathy were considered secondary risk factors. The presence of high blood pressure, in this study, was not a risk factor associated with DR.