OBJECTIVES: To report the recent literature evidence on health-related quality of life (HRQoL) and health utilities in patients with diabetic retinopathy (DR).

METHODS: A literature search was conducted in Embase and Medline to identify English-language articles published between 2017 and November 2021, using “diabetic retinopathy” medical terms and HRQoL and health utility terms. Clinical trials and observational studies were of interest.

RESULTS: After removing duplicates, 189 citations were identified through databases and grey literature searches. Finally, 11 studies were included. Included studies were conducted across China (4), Brazil (1), Ecuador (1), Iran (1), Taiwan (1), Thailand (1), UK (1), and not reported (1). The study designs were cross-sectional (7), questionnaires (2), case-control (1), and case series (1). HRQoL reported by using EQ-VAS (4), SF-36 (1), and SF-12v2 (1) and health utilities reported by using EQ-5D (6), SF-6D (1), time trade-off (TTO) (2), and standard gamble (SG) (1) across the studies.

The mean and median EQ-5D VAS scores ranged from 67.3 to 79.9 and 65 to 75, respectively. The mean SF-36 scores of physical functioning and general health were 75.60 and 56.53, respectively. The mean PCS and MCS SF-12v2 scores for sight-threatening DR were 41.12 and 52.94, respectively. The mean EQ-5D utilities ranged from 0.356 (diabetic bilateral blindness) to 0.971 (unilateral DR); vision-threatening DR (VTDR) has poorer health (0.658 to 0.80) than non-VTDR (0.801 to 0.87). The mean SF-6D utilities for sight-threatening DR and non-proliferative DR were 0.828 and 0.865, respectively. The mean TTO utility value was 0.924 in DR patients; showed increased health in 3-month postoperative cataract surgery (0.72) compared with preoperative (0.58). The mean SG utility value was 0.30 in patients with DR.

CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggest that diabetic retinopathy is associated with poorer quality of life in vision-threatening and bilateral conditions compared with non-VT and unilateral.