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Course Summary

Simon O’Neill; Robin Hamilton & Philip Morgan (26:46)

The NHS spends £10 billion a year, 10% of its entire budget, dealing with diabetes and its complications. Diabetics are at high risk of damage to the eyes; most people with diabetes will develop some form of retinopathy caused by high levels of glucose in the blood. Diabetic retinopathy is the most common cause of preventable sight loss in the working-age population. With diabetes diagnoses increasing, the number of patients who present with some form of diabetic retinopathy will correlate.

Simon O’Neill, Director of Health Intelligence at the national charity, Diabetes UK, outlines the current situation in the UK. Following this, Philip Morgan interviews Mr Robin Hamilton, a consultant ophthalmic surgeon who specialises in diabetic retinopathy. They discuss the risk factors for developing retinopathy, and how the existing care system operates.

First published in DOCET OQ92 (2015).

    More information and references

    References:

    • Bello NA, et al. 2014. Retinopathy and clinical outcomes in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus, chronic kidney disease, and anaemia. BMJ Open Diab Res Care. 2 (1).
    • Diabetes UK. 2014. Diabetes: Facts and Figures. http://www.diabetes.org.uk/Documents/About%20Us/Statistics/Diabetes-key-stats-guidelines-April2014.pdf
    • Diabetes UK. 2014. 15 Healthcare essentials. http://www.diabetes.org.uk/15-essentials
    • Hex N, et al. 2012. Estimating the current and future costs of type 1 and type 2 diabetes in the UK, including direct health costs and indirect societal and productivity costs. Diabetic Medicine. 29 (7), 855 – 862.
    • Pelosini L, et al. 2013. Retina rejuvenation therapy for diabetic macular edema: A pilot study. Retina. 33 (3), 548 – 558.
    • Zhang X, et al. 2014. Glucocorticoids: Structure, signaling and molecular mechanisms in the treatment of diabetic retinopathy and diabetic macular edema. Curr Mol Med. 14 (3), 376 – 384.
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