Diabetic Retinopathy: Does 12 Weeks of Intensive Lifestyle Intervention Cause Any Improvement?

A 12-week intensive lifestyle intervention program produced overall mild improvement in pattern reversal and flash visual evoked potentials (PRVEP and FVEP) in patients with diabetic retinopathy.

• Study was a quasi-experimental design conducted at AIIMS, Nagpur
• 75 patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus of greater than 5 years duration were recruited
• Lifestyle intervention included modification in dietary pattern, regular exercise, healthy sleep schedule, and stress management
• Initial intervention was a 1.5-hour lifestyle intervention session followed by follow-up visits on 15th, 30th, and 45th days with biweekly telephonic/WhatsApp follow-up in between
• Reduction in latencies was observed but no major changes in amplitudes were found

Mild changes in retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) thickness were observed following the 12-week intervention, including a reduction in the severity of RNFL thickening in both eyes.

• Optical coherence tomography (OCT) was used to assess retinal nerve fiber layer changes
• Mild changes along with a reduction in the severity of thickening of the RNFL of both eyes were seen
• No major changes in central macula thickness were observed
• Visual evoked potential (VEP) and OCT were the primary outcome measurement tools

Lifestyle modifications involving diet, exercise, sleep, and stress management were found to play a crucial role in the improvement of diabetic retinopathy.

• The intervention components included dietary pattern modification, regular exercise, healthy sleep schedule, and stress management
• Study population consisted of type 2 diabetes mellitus patients with disease duration greater than 5 years
• Clinical history and anthropometry parameters were recorded at baseline
• The study was conducted in the Department of Physiology in collaboration with the Department of Ophthalmology

Diabetic retinopathy is identified as the most common cause of severe vision loss in adults and results from long-term microvascular complications of diabetes mellitus.

• DR is described as a microvascular disorder occurring due to the long-term effects of diabetes mellitus
• Diabetic retinopathy may lead to vision-threatening damage to the retina and eventually blindness
• The study used both OCT and VEP to evaluate retinopathy status, reflecting the multidimensional nature of the condition