Mean platelet volume as a predictive biomarker for retinopathy in patients with type 2 diabetes

Objective: To determine the association of mean platelet volume with diabetic retinopathy in our population. Study Design: Cross sectional study. Place and Duration of Study: Department of Hematology & Ophthalmology, Combined Military Hospital Lahore, from Jul to Dec 2020. Methodology: A total of 146 known patients with type 2 diabetes were enrolled in this study. They included 78 patients with diabetic retinopathy (group 1) and 68 without diabetic retinopathy (group 2). Five (5ml) of whole blood was extracted from patients through clean venipuncture in a tube containing EDTA and mean platelet volume was generated through automated haematological analyzer Sysmex KX-21 and HbA1c was generated through automated analyzer Cobas c501. Result: A total of 146 patients with type 2 diabetes were included in this study. The age of patients ranged from 25-70 years (Mean age: 53.3 ± 0.02 years). Out of 146 patients 66 (45.2%) were males and 80 (54.8%) were females. Among patients with type 2 diabetes 78 (53.4%) has retinopathy while 68 (46.6%) have no retinopathy. A statistically significant difference (p<0.005) was observed in mean platelet volume and platelet distribution width among patients with retinopathy to those without retinopathy. Conclusion: Mean platelet volume plays a significant role in the determination of retinopathy with type 2 diabetes and helps to monitor progression of disease.