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Fenofibrate and Diabetic Retinopathy

  • Microvascular Complications—Retinopathy (JK Sun and PS Silva, Section Editors)
  • Published:
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Abstract

Diabetic retinopathy, a common and sight-threatening microvascular complication of diabetes mellitus, is a leading cause of blindness among working-aged adults. Medical therapies including intensive control of hyperglycemia and hypertension have been shown to reduce the incidence and progression of diabetic retinopathy. The association of dyslipidemia and treatment with statins with diabetic retinopathy is inconsistent in epidemiologic studies. However, two recent randomized clinical trials have demonstrated beneficial effects of systemic fenofibrate therapy in reducing the progression of diabetic retinopathy independently of serum lipid levels. These findings suggest that fenofibrate may be an effective strategy for reducing the progression of diabetic retinopathy, thus reducing the large and growing public health burden of treating the sight-threatening complications of diabetic retinopathy.

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Acknowledgments

This research was supported by the Intramural Research Program of the NIH, NEI.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. National Eye Institute, National Institutes of Health, 10 Center Dr, 10/10D45, Bethesda, MD, 20892, USA

    Jared E. Knickelbein, Akshar B. Abbott & Emily Y. Chew

  2. Division of Epidemiology and Clinical Applications, Clinical Trials Branch, National Eye Institute/National Institutes of Health, Bldg 10—Clinical Research Center, Room 3-2531, 10 Center Dr, Mailstop Code 1204, Bethesda, MD, 20892, USA

    Emily Y. Chew

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  1. Jared E. Knickelbein
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Correspondence to Emily Y. Chew.

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Jared E. Knickelbein, Akshar B. Abbott, and Emily Y. Chew declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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This article does not contain any studies with human or animal subjects performed by any of the authors.

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This article is part of the Topical Collection on Microvascular Complications—Retinopathy

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Knickelbein, J.E., Abbott, A.B. & Chew, E.Y. Fenofibrate and Diabetic Retinopathy. Curr Diab Rep 16, 90 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11892-016-0786-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11892-016-0786-7

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