Fenofibrate (Lipidil), which for a long time has been used to treat cholesterol, has been approved by the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) for a new indication to slow the progression of existing diabetic retinopathy in patients with type 2 diabetes.
Type 2 diabetes has affected ten thousand Australians in the past decade.
Professor Paul Mitchell says patients should be started on Lipidil early.
Speaking at the Royal Australian New Zealand College of Ophthalmology Conference in Tasmania, he said both the Accord Study and the Field Study have indicated that fenofibrate reduced the need for first laser treatment and the progression of diabetic retinopathy. Although the TGA has approved the use of fenofibrate for type 2 diabetes, Professor Mitchell said type 2 and type 1 diabetic retinopathy are “pretty much the same” and “the best benefits come from starting early – when the first signs of diabetic retinopathy are there”.
