The Relationship between Blood Vitamin A Levels and Diabetic Retinopathy: A Population-Based Study

We assessed the relationship between blood vitamin A levels and the risk of diabetic retinopathy. The study was taken for 11,727 participants aged 40 or older who participated in the Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Vitamin A in the blood was classified into quartiles. Diabetic retinopathy was diagnosed by the Early Treatment for Diabetic Retinopathy Study. After adjusting confounding variables such as age, sex, smoking, cholesterol, diabetes prevalence period, glycated hemoglobin levels, and high blood pressure, the odd ratio (OR) of vitamin A at quartile level 4 for diabetic retinopathy was 0.32 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.14 – 0.72, P for trend < 0.001). In male, the OR of quartile 3 level vitamin A for diabetic retinopathy was 0.11 (95% CI, 0.01 – 0.69, P for trend = 0.010). In adults under the age of 60, the OR of vitamin A at quartile level 3 for diabetic retinopathy was 0.10. (95% CI, 0.03 – 0.29, P for trend < 0.001). Vitamin A is associated with a low risk of diabetic retinopathy. Particularly, there is a more effective relationship in male and adults under the age of 60.