Lee HJ, Kim CO, Lee DC. Association between daily sunlight exposure duration and diabetic retinopathy in Korean adults with diabetes: A nationwide population-based cross-sectional study.
PLoS One 2020;
15:e0237149. [PMID:
32764774 DOI:
10.1371/journal.pone.0237149]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/01/2020] [Accepted: 07/21/2020] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Purpose
To investigate the association between daily sunlight exposure duration and diabetic retinopathy in Korean adults with diabetes.
Methods
This study used data from the 2008–2011 Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Overall, 1,089 patients with diabetes aged >40 years were included. The duration of daily sunlight exposure was assessed via health interviews. Comprehensive ophthalmic evaluations, including standard retinal fundus photography after pupil dilation, were conducted. Diabetic retinopathy was graded using the modified Airlie House Classification. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was performed to analyze the association between daily sunlight exposure duration and the diagnosis of diabetic retinopathy and non-proliferative diabetic retinopathy.
Results
The risk of diabetic retinopathy was 2.66 times higher in the group with ≥5 h of daily sunlight exposure than in the group with less exposure after adjusting for risk factors such as duration of diabetes, serum hemoglobin A1c level, hypertension, and dyslipidemia (P = 0.023). Furthermore, the risk of non-proliferative diabetic retinopathy was 3.13 times higher in the group with ≥5 h of daily sunlight exposure than in the group with less exposure (P = 0.009). In patients with diabetes for <10 years, the risks of diabetic retinopathy and non-proliferative diabetic retinopathy were 4.26 and 4.82 times higher in the group with ≥5 h of daily sunlight exposure than the group with less exposure, respectively (P < 0.05).
Conclusions
This study revealed that sunlight exposure for ≥5 h a day was significantly associated with an increased risk of diabetic retinopathy and non-proliferative diabetic retinopathy in Korean patients with diabetes. The risks were significantly higher in patients with diabetes for <10 years. Therefore, reducing daily sunlight exposure could be an early preventive strategy against diabetic retinopathy in people with diabetes.
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