African Americans with type 1 diabetes who are depressed are more likely to have poor control over their blood sugar levels and, over time, experience a more rapid progression of diabetic retinopathy, a new study shows.
In previous research with the same group of patients, Dr Monique S. Roy of UMDNJ-New Jersey Medical School in Newark and her colleagues found that poor control over blood sugar (glucose), high blood pressure and kidney disease were primary medical risk factors for diabetic retinopathy, damage to the blood vessels around the retina. However, these factors only explain 37 percent of the variation in retinopathy severity in these patients.
Depression is known to increase inflammation and it has also been tied to hormonal changes and blood clotting abnormalities, all of which might play a role in progression of diabetic retinopathy, Roy told Reuters Health. "It's a complex problem, and we're trying to untangle that," she said in an interview.