Most impoant risk factor in development of diabetic retinopathy is ?

Ans. is 'a' i.e., Duration of type II diabetes mellitus Risk factors for development of diabetic retinopathv in diabetic patients Risk factors associated with diabetic retinopathy arc :- i) Duration of disease :- It is the most impoant risk factor. It is woh noting that it is the duration of disease after the onset of puberity, which acts as risk factor. For example, the risk of retinopathy is roughly same for two 25 years old patients, of whom one developed DM at 12 years (onset of pubey) and other at the age of 6 years because both have same duration (13 yrs) of disease after the onset of pubey. The risk of retinopathy in children diagnosed prior to the age of 2 years have a negligible risk of retinopathy for the first 10 years. So, age of onset also acts as a risk factor. However, after onset of pubey, age of onset is not a risk factor. ii) Sex :- Incidence is more in females iii) Poor glycemic control iv) Accompanying factors :- Hypeension, smoking, poor renal status, obesity, hyperlipidemia v) Pregnancy :- May accelerate the changes of diabetic retinopathy.