Diabetic retinopathy in a remote Indigenous primary healthcare population: a Central Australian diabetic retinopathy screening study in the Telehealth Eye and Associated Medical Services Network project

Abstract

Aim: To determine diabetic retinopathy prevalence and severity among remote Indigenous Australians. Methods: A cross-sectional diabetic retinopathy screening study of Indigenous adults with Type 2 diabetes was conducted by locally trained non-ophthalmic retinal imagers in a remote Aboriginal community-controlled primary healthcare clinic in Central Australia and certified non-ophthalmic graders in a retinal grading centre in Melbourne, Australia. The main outcome measure was prevalence of any diabetic retinopathy and sight-threatening diabetic retinopathy. Results: Among 301 participants (33% male), gradable image rates were 78.7% (n = 237) for diabetic retinopathy and 83.1% (n = 250) for di..