Abstract

Wedad Bardisi

Diabetes mellitus is one of the most prevalent diseases all over the world. Diabetic retinopathy is the most frequent micro vascular complications known to be a leading cause of blindness, the prevalence of diabetic retinopathy ranged from 19% to 36% in Saudi Arabia. Primary care centres in Saudi Arabia follow the National Saudi Diabetic Guidelines for medical care of diabetes for primary care that recommends primary prevention of diabetic retinopathy by controlling its risk factors and annual screening. We aimed to study the prevalence of diabetic retinopathy and its risk factors in addition to estimate the effect of expanding the screening interval on the rate of detection of diabetic retinopathy.