Comparison of cataract surgery outcomes in patients with type 1 vs type 2 diabetes mellitus and patients without diabetes mellitus

Purpose: To report outcomes of cataract surgery in type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) compared with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and patients without diabetes mellitus (DM). Setting: Academic tertiary referral university hospital eye center, Aurora, Colorado. Design: Retrospective chart review using the University of Colorado Cataract Outcomes Database for all cataract surgeries between 2014 and 2020. Methods: Demographics, ocular history, and postoperative outcomes were compared across groups using general linear and logistic regression modeling with estimating equations to account for some patients having 2 eyes included. Results: 8117 patients and 13 383 eyes were included. Compared with T2DM eyes undergoing cataract surgery (n = 3115), T1DM eyes (n = 233) were more likely to have a history of diabetic retinopathy (DR) (60.5% vs 23.6%, P < .0001), of which proliferative DR was the most common (63.1% vs 42.4%, P < .0001). T1DM eyes were also more likely to have a history of retinal detachment (RD) (9.0% vs 2.9%, P < .0001) and prior vitrectomy surgery (12.9% vs 4.0%, P < .0001). Despite having similar preoperative corrected distance visual acuity (CDVA) as T2DM eyes (logMAR 0.52 vs 0.44, P = .092), T1DM eyes had worse CDVA after cataract surgery (logMAR 0.27 vs 0.15, P = .0003). In a multivariate analysis, a history of proliferative DR and prior RD were significant predictors of worse postoperative CDVA (P < .0001) but type of DM was not (P = .894). Conclusions: T1DM eyes have worse visual outcomes after cataract surgery compared with T2DM eyes. Worse postoperative visual acuity was associated with worse preoperative DR and history of RD rather than type of DM.