MTM Vision Co-Scientific Director Jennifer K. Sun, M.D., M.P.H., of the Department of Ophthalmology at Harvard Medical School and the Beetham Eye Institute at Joslin Diabetes Center, co-authored an article titled “Diabetic Retinopathy in Youths – A Potential Unappreciated Public Health Catastrophe,” recently published in JAMA Ophthalmology. Sun’s co-authors include Julie Rosenthal, M.D., M.S., from the Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences at the W.K. Kellogg Eye Center, University of Michigan, and Risa M. Wolf, M.D., from the Division of Pediatric Endocrinology at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. The article highlights the concerning rise of diabetic retinopathy (DR) in youths, a condition traditionally considered rare in this population. Recent data from the SEARCH and TODAY studies revealed alarming rates of DR among youths with diabetes, with 52% of those with type 1 diabetes and up to 55% with youth-onset type 2 diabetes showing signs of the disease after a relatively short duration of 7.5 to 12 years.
