Diabetic macular oedema (DMO)

Information for healthcare professionals about diabetic macular oedema.

Diabetic macular oedema (DMO) is a complication of diabetes that occurs when there is damage to the blood-retinal barrier, leading to accumulation of fluid within the intraretinal layers of the macular.¹

Hyperglycaemia caused by uncontrolled diabetes can, over time, lead to serious damage to body systems, particularly nerves and blood vessels.²

Worldwide, diabetes is one of the leading causes of²:

 

Heart attack and stroke

 

Blindness

 

Kidney failure

 

Lower-limb amputation

DMO is a complication of diabetic retinopathy. It can occur at any stage of diabetic retinopathy, although it is more likely to occur the longer the disease goes on.³

Approximately 7% of people with diabetes have DMO.⁴

 

 

Adapted from Diabetes UK.⁵

Of the £9.8 billion total cost of diabetes to the NHS, around 80% is spent on complications of disease.⁵

*This data analysis is from 2010/2011.⁵

Resources

1. Bhagat N et al. Surv Ophthalmol 2009;54(1):1–320.
2. World Health Organization. Diabetes. 2020. Available at: https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/diabetes [Accessed September 2020].
3. National Eye Institute. Macular edema. Available at: https://www.nei.nih.gov/learn-about-eye-health/eye-conditions-and-diseases/macular-edema [Accessed September 2020].
4. Minassian DC et al. Br J Ophthalmol 2012;96(3):345–349.
5. Diabetes UK. The Cost of Diabetes. Available at: https://www.diabetes.org.uk/resources-s3/2017-11/diabetes%20uk%20cost%20of%20diabetes%20report.pdf [Accessed September 2020].