Epidemiology of moderately severe and severe non-proliferative diabetic retinopathy in South West England

Aims To estimate the incidence of early treatment diabetic retinopathy study (ETDRS) level 47 and 53 and progression to treatment with panretinal photocoagulation (PRP) for proliferative DR (PDR). Methods Log-linear regression was used to estimate the incidence of level 47–53 or worse for 33,009 people with diabetes (PWD) in Gloucestershire during 2013–2016 by calendar year and diabetes type, based on the first recording. Progression was analysed in Gloucestershire and Bristol with a parametric survival analysis examining the association of baseline and time-varying demographic and clinical factors on time to PRP after the first recording of level 47–53. Results Incidence decreased from 0.57 (95% confidence intervals (CI) 0.48–0.67) per 100 PWD in 2013 to 0.35 (95% CI 0.29–0.43) in 2016 (p < 0.001). For progression, 338 eligible PWD from Gloucestershire and 418 from Bristol were followed for a median of 1.4 years; 78 and 83% had Type 2 diabetes and a median (interquartile range) of 15 (10–22) and 17 (11–25) years duration of diagnosed diabetes respectively. Three years from the incident ETDRS 47–53, 18.9% and 17.2% had received PRP respectively. For Gloucestershire, severe IRMA and updated mean HbA1c were associated with an increase in the risk of initiating PRP (hazard ratio 3.14 (95% CI: 1.60–6.15) and 1.21 (95% CI: 1.06–1.38 per 10 mmol/mol) respectively). Conclusion This study provides additional understanding of this population and shows that a high proportion of patients with ETDRS levels 47–53 need to be monitored as they are at high risk of progressing to PDR.