Evaluation of serum calcium level in diabetic patients with and without diabetic retinopathy

The level of serum metal ions, such as calcium plays an important role in health and disease conditions. The purpose of this study was to investigate the level of serum calcium in diabetic patients with and without retinopathy in comparison with healthy controls. Serum samples were collected from 20 diabetic patients without retinopathy, 20 diabetic patients with proliferative retinopathy, 20 with non-proliferative retinopathy and 20 healthy age matched controls. Calcium level were detected using commercially available kits by colorimetric assay. Our results showed that mean serum calcium levels in diabetic, non-proliferative and proliferative diabetic patients were 8.66, 9.41 and 8.24 mg/dl respectively. Serum levels for calcium were significantly higher in non- proliferative group in comparison to the control (p =0.049). It seems that an increase in serum calcium concentration is associated with an increased risk of non-proliferative retinopathy in diabetic individuals.

Evaluation of serum calcium level in diabetic patients with and without diabetic retinopathy Keywords:

Diabetes mellitus , serum calcium , diabetic retinopathy