Objective

Continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) has provided new measures of glycemic control that link to diabetes complications. This study investigated the association between the time in range (TIR) assessed by CGM and diabetic retinopathy (DR).

Research Design And Methods

A total of 3,262 patients with type 2 diabetes were recruited. TIR was defined as the percentage of time spent within the glucose range of 3.9-10.0 mmol/L during a 24-h period. Measures of glycemic variability (GV) were assessed as well. DR was determined by using fundus photography and graded as ) non-DR; ) mild nonproliferative DR (NPDR); ) moderate NPDR; or ) vision-threatening DR (VTDR).

Results

The overall prevalence of DR was 23.9% (mild NPDR 10.9%, moderate NPDR 6.1%, VTDR 6.9%). Patients with more advanced DR had significantly less TIR and higher measures of GV (all for trend <0.01). The prevalence of DR on the basis of severity decreased with ascending TIR quartiles (all for trend <0.001), and the severity of DR was inversely correlated with TIR quartiles ( = -0.147; < 0.001). Multinomial logistic regression revealed significant associations between TIR and all stages of DR (mild NPDR, = 0.018; moderate NPDR, = 0.014; VTDR, = 0.019) after controlling for age, sex, BMI, diabetes duration, blood pressure, lipid profile, and HbA. Further adjustment of GV metrics partially attenuated these associations, although the link between TIR and the presence of any DR remained significant.

Conclusions

TIR assessed by CGM is associated with DR in type 2 diabetes.