Building a management model for diabetic retinopathy and macular edema

Diabetic retinopathy and macular edema are a serious health burden, but the number of cases detected early, managed and treated is still low.

Dr. Nguyen Trong Khoa, Deputy Director of the Department of Medical Examination and Treatment Management ( Ministry of Health ) discussed at the seminar.

On August 21, the Department of Medical Examination and Treatment Management (Ministry of Health ) in collaboration with the Vietnam Medical Association and Roche Pharma Vietnam Company Limited organized a scientific seminar "Towards building a comprehensive management model for patients with diabetic retinopathy and macular edema in hospitals" with the participation of leading experts in the fields of ophthalmology and endocrinology.

In Vietnam, there are about 7 million people with diabetes, but more than 50% of them are undiagnosed, creating a huge "iceberg" of potential complications.

Opinions exchanged at the seminar said that one of the biggest challenges today is the low rate of patients with eye complications due to diabetes who are managed and treated. Some studies show that 6 out of 10 diabetic patients have eye complications, but only a small portion of these are screened and diagnosed early.

Barriers to the above situation include limited public awareness, difficulties in accessing health services and cost burdens, preventing many people from receiving early intervention. This leads to serious consequences such as irreversible vision loss and blindness, posing an urgent need for synchronous solutions to improve screening rates and effective treatment. And the construction of a comprehensive management model, coordinated by multiple specialties is extremely urgent.

Dr. Nguyen Trong Khoa, Deputy Director of the Department of Medical Examination and Treatment Management, highly appreciated the importance of building a comprehensive management model for patients with diabetic retinopathy and macular edema at the hospital.

This not only helps improve the quality of treatment for patients but also contributes significantly to the development of ophthalmology in public hospitals, especially at the provincial level. The application of new technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) in early detection is a positive direction.

It is known that to realize this goal, the cooperation program has outlined a specific roadmap. The 2025-2027 period will focus on building and piloting a comprehensive management model at a number of key hospitals. Based on the pilot results, national guidelines will be issued in 2027, serving as a basis for nationwide replication in the 2028-2030 period.

The ultimate goal is to support increasing the proportion of people with diabetes who receive eye examination and monitoring to over 75% by 2030, according to the national strategy for preventing blindness.

Experts participating in the discussion.

Associate Professor, Dr. Pham Ngoc Dong, Director of the Central Eye Hospital affirmed: The Central Eye Hospital is ready to join hands in building a comprehensive management model, especially in developing and perfecting professional guidelines and policies related to the management of retinal diseases and diabetic macular edema.

Delegates attending the seminar also agreed on the need to establish a group of experts and build a clear coordination mechanism between the parties.

The results of the event are an important step to implement the next activities, hopefully bringing positive changes in the management of patients with diabetic retinopathy and macular edema, contributing to reducing the burden of blindness and improving the quality of life for Vietnamese people.

Quang Minh

Source: https://nhandan.vn/xay-dung-mo-hinh-quan-ly-nguoi-benh-vong-mac-va-phu-hoang-diem-do-dai-thao-duong-post902539.html