Relationship between plasma growth differentiation factor-15 levels and diabetic retinopathy in individuals with type 2 diabetes

• Main Authors: Jin Ook Chung, Seon-Young Park, Dong Hyeok Cho, Dong Jin Chung, Min Young Chung
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Nature Publishing Group 2020-11-01
• Series: Scientific Reports
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-020-77584-z

Abstract The purpose of our study was to investigate the relationship between plasma growth differentiation factor-15 (GDF-15) concentrations and diabetic retinopathy in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM). We evaluated 235 patients with type 2 DM in a cross-sectional study. Significantly increased levels of the plasma GDF-15 were found in individuals with diabetic retinopathy versus those without. According to the degree of diabetic retinopathy, there was a significant difference in the average plasma GDF-15 levels (no diabetic retinopathy, 1114 ng/L; nonproliferative diabetic retinopathy, 1327 ng/L; proliferative diabetic retinopathy, 1445 ng/L; p for trend = 0.035) after adjustments for confounders. Logistic regression analyses indicated that plasma GDF-15 concentrations were significantly associated with diabetic retinopathy (odds ratio per 1 standard deviation increment in the log-transformed value, 1.78; 95% confidence interval, 1.05–3.03, p = 0.032). Our study showed a significant positive relationship between plasma GDF-15 concentrations and diabetic retinopathy in type 2 DM patients.