Diabetes medication not linked with some common eye diseases

Treatment with the diabetes medication was associated with a lower risk of open-angle glaucoma (OAG) and age-related macular degeneration (AMD) in a cohort of patients with type 2 diabetes. Interventional clinical trials are needed to confirm causality.

Of the 11,260 participants included in this study, 28.4% (n = 2406) were diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. A total of 4.4% of participants (324 of 7394) were diagnosed with OAG, 17.6% (1935 of 10,993) were diagnosed with AMD, and 37.3% (4203 of 11,260) were diagnosed with cataract.

Patients who had untreated type 2 diabetes had a higher risk of OAG, AMD, and cataract. Patients treated with metformin had a lower risk of OAG, and those treated with other medications, including insulin and sulfonylurea derivates, had a lower risk of AMD.

The cumulative lifetime risk of OAG was lower for individuals taking metformin compared to participants without type 2 diabetes. There was a lower lifetime risk of AMD in participants taking other types of medications for diabetes.

Reference
Vergroesen JE, Thee EF, Ahmadizar F, et al. Association of Diabetes Medication With Open-Angle Glaucoma, Age-Related Macular Degeneration, and Cataract in the Rotterdam Study. JAMA Ophthalmol. Published online May 19, 2022. doi:10.1001/jamaophthalmol.2022.1435