Association of alcohol intake with incidence and progression of diabetic retinopathy

Abstract

Purpose We examined the longitudinal association of baseline alcohol intake and frequency with the 6-year incidence and progression of diabetic retinopathy (DR) in a population-based cohort of Singaporean Indians. Methods We included 656 participants with diabetes mellitus, gradable retinal photographs from baseline (2007-2009) and follow-up (2013-2015) examinations, information on alcohol intake and other relevant data from the Singapore Indian Eye Study were included. Incident DR was defined using the Modified Airlie House Classification as no DR at baseline and at least minimal non-proliferative DR at follow-up; and DR progression as at least a one-step worsening in DR at follow-up from m..