LONDON: People with diabetes are twice as likely to develop cataract as the general population and the relative risk is highest in those aged between 45 and 54, according to a study. Researchers from Anglia Ruskin University in the UK analysed medical records from 56,510 UK-based diabetes patients aged 40 or over and found that cataract was diagnosed at an overall rate of 20.4 per 1,000 people. Diabetics aged between 45 and 54 were considerably more likely than non-sufferers to develop cataract. Those diabetic patients aged between 45 and 49 were 4.6 times more likely to, and diabetics aged between 50 and 54 were 5.7 times more at risk than their healthy counterparts. "The report has shown that having diabetes doubles your risk of being diagnosed with a cataract, and that this risk is six times higher if a diabetic patient has significant diabetic retinal disease, called diabetic maculopathy," said Rupert Bourne, Professor at Anglia Ruskin University.

Source: Economic Times February 06, 2018 13:52 UTC