STUDY OF INTRA OCULAR PRESSURE IN PATIENTS WITH TYPE 2 DIABETES MELLITUS OF UDAIPUR DISTRICT, RAJASTHAN, INDIA

Background: Intraocular pressure constitutes the most important risk factor for the emergence of glaucoma, a pathology often associated with diabetes mellitus. Objective: The purpose of the study was to analyze the relationship between intraocular pressure and type 2 diabetes mellitus and to investigate the effects of chronic hyperglycaemia on the intraocular pressure (IOP). Materials and Methods: We prospectively measured the IOP by applanation tonometry in 100 patients with type 2 diabetes (Group I) and in 100 Normal subject as a control(Group II). The glycosylated haemoglobin (HbA1c) levels of the subjects with diabetes were determined and based on that, they were divided into 3 subgroups as group Ia with HbA1c levels of < 7% (n = 40); group Ib with HbA1c levels of 7 to 8.0%(n = 32); and group Ic with HbA1c levels of > 8.0% (n = 28 ) All the data were expressed as means ± standard deviations.The statistical analysis was performed by the Student’s t test. The correlation between HbA1c and IOP was analyzed by the Pearson’s correlation coefficient. A p value of < 0 .05 was considered to be significant. Results: We observed that the IOP values were higher in the subjects with diabetes (Mean = 21.50 ± 3.50) than in the age and sex matched control groups. The mean IOP in the groups Ia, Ib and Ic were 16.32 ± 2.10 , 20.54 ± 2.50 mm Hg, and 21.95 ± 3.20 mm Hg respectively. The difference in the IOP between the groups Ib and Ic was found to be statistically significant (P = .001) Conclusion: Diabetic subjects with elevated HbA1c levels exhibited significantly higher IOPs compared to those with lower HbA1c levels. Findings from this study indicate an association between hyperglycemia and elevated IOP and that poor glycemic control may contribute to increased IOP levels in long-term diabetic patients.