Purpose. To characterize the economic and quality of life burden of diabetic macular edema (DME) in Canadian patients. Patients and Methods. 145 patients with DME were followed for 6 months with monthly telephone interviews and medical chart reviews at months 0, 3, and 6. Visual acuity in the worst-seeing eye was assessed at months 0 and 6. DME-related healthcare costs were determined over 6 months, and vision-related (National Eye Institute Visual Functioning Questionnaire) and generic (EQ-5D) quality of life was assessed at months 0, 3, and 6. Results. Mean age of patients was 63.7 years: 52% were male and 72% had bilateral DME. At baseline, visual acuity was categorized as normal/mild loss for 63.4% of patients, moderate loss for 10.4%, and severe loss/nearly blind for 26.2%. Mean 6-month DME-related costs/patient were as follows: all patients (n = 135), $2,092; normal/mild loss (n = 88), $1,776; moderate loss (n = 13), $1,845; and severe loss/nearly blind (n = 34), $3,007. Composite scores for vision-related quality of life declined with increasing visual acuity loss; generic quality of life scores were highest for moderate loss and lowest for severe loss/nearly blind. Conclusions. DME-related costs in the Canadian healthcare system are substantial. Costs increased and vision-related quality of life declined with increasing visual acuity severity.

OBJECTIVES:To characterize the economic and societal burden of Diabetic Macular Edema (DME) in Canada. METHODS: Patients with clinically significant macular edema (CSME) were enrolled by ophthalmologists or retinal specialists across Canada. Patients are followed over a 6-month period to combine prospective data collected during monthly telephone interviews and at sites at months 0, 3 and 6. Visual acuity (VA) is measured and DME-related health care resource information is collected. Patient health-related quality of life is measured using the National Eye Institute Visual Functioning Questionnaire (NEI VFQ-25), and the EuroQol Five Dimensions (EQ-5D). The 3-month results are available and presented here. RESULTS: A total of 145 patients [mean age 63.8 years (range: 30-86 yrs); 52% male; 81% Type 2 diabetes; mean duration of diabetes 18 years (range: 1-62 yrs); 72% bilateral CSME] were enrolled from 17 sites across 6 provinces in Canada. At baseline, the mean VA was 20/60 (range: 20/20-20/800) across all eyes diagnosed with CSME (249 eyes). Sixty-eight percent of patients had VA severity in the worse seeing eye of normal/mild vision loss (VA 20/10 to Յ 20/80), 19% moderate vision loss (VA Ͼ 20/80 to Յ 20/200), and 13% severe vision loss/nearly blind (VA Ͼ 20/200). At month 3, the mean NEI VFQ-25 composite score was 79.9, the mean EQ-5D utility score was 0.79, and the EQ visual analogue scale score was 70.6. The average