Global Concerns for Diabetic Retinopathy Management Increase

As one of the leading causes of blindness, diabetic retinopathy has greatly impacted populations around the world, with higher prevalence rates and reported cases than ever before in the past three decades. Photo: Jay Haynie, OD. Click image to enlarge. Severe ocular diseases must be attended to before their impact decreases patients’ visual acuity, leading to loss of vision, but various countries do not have the resources to adequately deliver care in every case. With a global demand for intervention, in particular for patients with diabetes, awareness is essential to achieve the best possible outcomes. In a recent article published in Ophthalmology and Therapy, Chinese researchers conducted a population-based analysis to observe the rates of diabetic retinopathy (DR)-related blindness.“To our knowledge, no study has yet comprehensively reported the burden and trends of DR-related blindness at the global, regional and national levels simultaneously,” addressed the authors in their paper. “Besides, currently no study has reported the burden of DR via the most recent Global Burden of Disease data.” Using the Global Burden of Disease Study, which provides estimates of the impact of over 300 diseases (including DR) from 204 countries, researchers were able to distinguish which regions were significantly affected by severe DR and determined the gravity of the situation worldwide.Examining data from 1990 to 2021, the researchers observed a significant increase in the number of global DR cases that led to blindness. They reported that the loss of vision increased by 326% over the more than three-decade span of time. In 1990, 311,588 cases of full vision impairment were recorded; by 2021, the number had soared to 1,327,278. South and East Asian regions made up the majority of these 2021 cases, with 372,469 patients with blindness in the South and 221,485 patients with blindness in the East.This increase in DR-related blindness coincided with a greater international prevalence over time. Researchers found that rates significantly grew from 7.6 cases per 100,000 people in 1990 to 15.3 cases per 100,000 people in 2021. Regions that presented with the highest prevalence rates in 2021 were Tropical Latin America (43.5 cases per 100,000 people) and Central Latin America (40.4 cases per 100,000). Australasia, a region consisting of Australia and neighboring island regions, had the lowest prevalence (0.3 cases per 100,000).“Decomposition analysis revealed that the increased global burden between 1990 and 2021 was driven by population growth, population aging and epidemiological changes,” reported the authors. “Predictions suggest the burden will continue to rise through 2035.” They anticipate that the global prevalence rate will increase to 16.1 cases per 100,000 people and the number of cases will grow to 1,950,000 patients worldwide by 2035.“These findings underscore the pressing need for targeted interventions in high-burden regions and countries,” shared the authors. They propose that “future research should focus on identifying effective interventions and policies to address the already-coming and upcoming challenges.”Click here for the journal source. Meng Y, Liu Y, Ma Y, et al. Global, regional, and national burden of blindness due to diabetic retinopathy, 1990-2021. Ophthalmol Ther. August 27, 2025. [Epub ahead of print].This article was developed by the editorial staff in conjunction with experts in the field. In the process, AI may have been among the editorial tools used to meet the goals of human editors, who approved all content.