Arch Ophthalmol. 1985 Dec;103(12):1796-806.
Data from the Early Treatment Diabetic Retinopathy Study (ETDRS) show that focal photocoagulation of "clinically significant" diabetic macular edema substantially reduces the risk of visual loss. Focal treatment also increases the chance of visual improvement, decreases the frequency of persistent macular edema, and causes only minor visual field losses. In this randomized clinical trial, which was supported by the National Eye Institute, 754 eyes that had macular edema and mild to moderate diabetic retinopathy were randomly assigned to focal argon laser photocoagulation, while 1,490 such eyes were randomly assigned to deferral of photocoagulation. The beneficial effects of treatment demonstrated in this trial suggest that all eyes with clinically significant diabetic macular edema should be considered for focal photocoagulation. Clinically significant macular edema is defined as retinal thickening that involves or threatens the center of the macula (even if visual acuity is not yet reduced) and is assessed by stereo contact lens biomicroscopy or stereo photography. Follow-up of all ETDRS patients continues without other modifications in the study protocol.
早期糖尿病性视网膜病变研究（ETDRS）的数据表明，对“具有临床意义的”糖尿病性黄斑水肿进行局部光凝可大幅降低视力丧失的风险。局部治疗还增加了视力改善的机会，降低了持续性黄斑水肿的发生率，且仅导致轻微的视野缺损。在这项由美国国立眼科研究所资助的随机临床试验中，754只患有黄斑水肿和轻度至中度糖尿病性视网膜病变的眼睛被随机分配接受局部氩激光光凝治疗，而1490只此类眼睛被随机分配延迟光凝治疗。该试验中所证明的治疗益处表明，所有患有具有临床意义的糖尿病性黄斑水肿的眼睛都应考虑进行局部光凝治疗。具有临床意义的黄斑水肿被定义为累及或威胁黄斑中心的视网膜增厚（即使视力尚未下降），并通过立体接触镜生物显微镜检查或立体摄影进行评估。所有ETDRS患者的随访仍在继续，研究方案无其他修改。
