Influence of serum lipid fractions on the course of diabetic macular edema after photocoagulation.

The influence of serum lipid fractions [triglyceride, cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol] on the visual outcome after central laser photocoagulation of 39 patients (65 eyes) with clinically significant macular edema was investigated in a prospective study. Referring to normal Austrian serum lipid levels, the patients were classified into a normal and a pathological group for each of the 4 lipids. Concerning triglycerides and HDL cholesterol, the normal group (triglyceride < 2.29 mmol/l, HDL cholesterol > 1.3 mmol/l) showed a statistically significantly better visual outcome than the pathological group. Also, patients with normal total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol values tended to achieve better results after treatment. We therefore conclude that serum lipid fractions may influence not only the success of laser treatment but also the course of diabetic macular edema.