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Report on the creation of a diabetes register and retinopathy screening outcomes in the Mid-West of Ireland

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Irish Journal of Medical Science (1971 -) Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Background

With concerns that blind registration in Ireland due to diabetic retinopathy is continuing to rise, a structured retinopathy screening service is in the process of being rolled out nationally.

Aims

To report on the validation process for creating a register of diabetics in the Mid-West of Ireland, and findings following retinopathy screening of a representative sample.

Methods

National primary care databases were employed in generating provisional lists of diabetic patients in the Health Service Executive (HSE) Mid-West area. Subsequent engagement with the corresponding general practices over a three year period between 2010 and 2013 facilitated the validation of these lists. A summary of the retinopathy screening outcomes of 1,434 patients and pre-existing screening patterns is reported.

Results

The number of patients on the Mid-West diabetes register to date is 11,126. Of the 1,434 patients screened, 288 (20.1 %) had background retinopathy, while 117 (8.2 %) had sight-threatening retinopathy. Seventeen (19.8 %) of the 86 patients identified with maculopathy required treatment with intravitreal injections. Of the 610 patients questioned about previous screening events, 389 (63.8 %) said they had undergone an ocular examination within the previous 12 months.

Conclusions

The HSE Mid-West has over 11,000 patients on its database ready to be screened by the national programme, with the treatment of maculopathy expected to have the largest impact on resources. Although the majority of patients are already undergoing screening in the community in an ad hoc fashion, the rates of sight-threatening retinopathy encountered highlight the timeliness of the full implementation of the national programme.

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Acknowledgments

We wish to thank Patricia Brewitt (Mid-West Database Co-ordinator, Primary, Continuing and Community Care, HSE West) for her effort and dedication in helping set up the Mid-West diabetes database, including the scheduling of practice visits, the validation of provisional lists, entry and updating of client details into the database, and organizing clinics to screen clients from this database. We would also like to thank Patrice James (Researcher, Oral Health Services Research Centre, University College Cork) for her considerable contribution on the statistical analysis and editing of the paper.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Medical Education Unit, University College Cork, Cork, Ireland

    M. James

  2. South Infirmary-Victoria University Hospital, Cork, Ireland

    C. Goodchild

  3. Department of Ophthalmology, Cork University Hospital, Cork, Ireland

    M. James & S. Bashir

  4. Department of Public Health, HSE West, Limerick, Ireland

    M. Mannix

Authors
  1. M. James
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  2. C. Goodchild
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  3. S. Bashir
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  4. M. Mannix
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to M. James.

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James, M., Goodchild, C., Bashir, S. et al. Report on the creation of a diabetes register and retinopathy screening outcomes in the Mid-West of Ireland. Ir J Med Sci 185, 151–159 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11845-015-1248-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11845-015-1248-y

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