Early Treatment Diabetic Retinopathy Study (ETDRS)
Status:
Completed
Trial end date:
1969-12-31
Target enrollment:
Participant gender:
Summary
To evaluate the effectiveness of both argon laser photocoagulation and aspirin therapy in
delaying or preventing progression of early diabetic retinopathy to more severe stages of
visual loss and blindness.
To help determine the best time to initiate photocoagulation treatment in diabetic
retinopathy.
To monitor closely the effects of diabetes mellitus and of photocoagulation on visual
function.
To produce natural history data that can be used to identify risk factors and test etiologic
hypotheses in diabetic retinopathy.