Heart disease therapy ‘could help reduce diabetes-related blindness’

Cases of diabetes-related blindness could be reduced through the use of a drug originally developed as a treatment for cardiovascular disease.

Researchers at Queen's University Belfast and University College London have discovered that the therapy darapladib inhibits an enzyme that is increased in people with diabetes and causes blood vessel leakage in the eye, which leads to swelling of the retina and vision loss.

Known as diabetic macular oedema, this condition occurs in approximately seven percent of patients with diabetes and is responsible for estimated health and social care costs of 116 million pounds in the UK alone.

Currently, it is treated using drug injections directly into the eye every four to six weeks, but these therapies are expensive and ineffective in around half of all cases.

By comparison, darapladib can be taken in tablet form, making it more convenient and cost-effective, as well as potentially offering benefits for individuals that do not respond to standard treatment.

Professor Alan Stitt from the Centre for Experimental Medicine at Queen's University said: "Based on our breakthrough we are now planning a clinical trial and, if successful, we could soon see an alternative, pain-free and cost-effective treatment for diabetic-related blindness."