Yang Deficiency Body Constitution Acts as a Predictor of Diabetic Retinopathy in Patients with Type 2 Diabetes: Taichung Diabetic Body Constitution Study

Objective. Diabetic retinopathy (DR), the most common microvascular complication of diabetes mellitus (DM), can cause severe visual impairment and blindness. To prevent the development of DR, identifying the associated risk factors for patient classification is critical. We conducted a cross-sectional study to determine whether body constitution (BC) is an independent predictor of DR. Method. 673 type 2 DM (T2DM) patients were recruited from a medical center, all received DR examination and body constitution questionnaire to assess BC. Other risk factors for DR were also recorded, including life style, history of diabetes, and blood pressure, etc. Multiple logistic regression analysis was conducted to calculate the odds ratios (ORs) for DR. Results. The prevalence of DR was significantly lower in Yang deficiency patients compared with non-Yang deficiency patients (24.69% versus 38.18% P = 0.02). After adjusting for other risk factors, we observed that patients exhibiting Yang deficiency BC were less likely to present with DR (OR = 0.531; 95% confidence interval = 0.312-0.903, P = 0.018). Conclusion. In addition to traditional risk factors, Yang deficiency BC might be an independent predictor of DR among T2DM patients and the results can be used as evidence for traditional Chinese medicine patient classification.