| dc.description.abstract | Introduction: Somalis' are a large ethnic community living in the North Eastern province of Kenya, Somalia, Eastern Ethiopia, and Djibouti where they are relatively secluded, Anecdotal observation has shown very few Somalis' presenting with diabetic retinopathy or complications of diabetic eye disease. We therefore proposed a study of the prevalence and pattern of diabetic retinopathy amongst the Somali community in Kenya and preferably at the Garissa Provincial General Hospital(GPGH).
Aim: To determine the prevalence, pattern and associations of Diabetic retinopathy in Somali patients attending medical Diabetic clinic at GPGH.
Design: This was a cross-sectional hospital based study.
Subjects: A total of 93 patients ranging from 8-89 years of age attending the diabetic clinic of Garissa Provincial General Hospital during the months of September and October 2011 underwent detailed eye examination for diabetic retinopathy. The blood pressure, BMI, and random blood sugar of all patients were also measured and clinical grading of diabetic retinopathy done using ETDRS guidelines.
Results: Prevalence of diabetic retinopathy was found to be 15.1 %. CSME was found in 8.6% patients. PDR was found in 2.2 % patients and vision threatening retinopathy in 9.7% patients. There was significant association between age, poor vision and duration of diabetic retinopathy. There was no significant association between blood pressure, BMI and diabetic retinopathy.
Conclusion: The prevalence of diabetic retinopathy (15.1 %) was comparable to the other studies conducted both regional and internationally. Majority of the patients 67.7% had no previous fundus examination by an ophthalmologist. | en_US |
