Низкий уровень магния в крови повышает риск развития диабетической ретинопатии

Lower serum magnesium levels are independently associated with the presence and progression of diabetic retinopathy (DR), suggesting that magnesium, particularly when combined with HbA1c data, may improve risk assessment and diagnostic performance for DR, according to results of a study published in BMC Ophthalmology. Researchers conducted a single-center retrospective study that included 450 participants treated between January 2020 and July 2025 who were equally divided into 3 groups: non-diabetes mellitus (non-DM; n=150), diabetes mellitus (DM; n=150), and DR (n=150).  Clinical characteristics, metabolic parameters, electrolytes, inflammatory indices, and cardiovascular measures were compared across groups. Ordinal and binary logistic regression analyses identified factors associated with DR progression and onset, while receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analyses evaluated the diagnostic performance of serum magnesium and HbA1c levels individually and in combination. Serum magnesium and sodium levels progressively declined from the non-DM group to the DM and DR groups, whereas heart rate and HbA1c increased stepwise (all P <.05). Multivariable ordinal logistic regression demonstrated that higher HbA1c (OR, 2.179; 95% CI, 1.870-2.542; P <.001) and phosphorus (OR, 3.518; 95% CI, 1.134-10.930; P =.029) were associated with greater DR risk, whereas magnesium was strongly inversely associated with DR progression (OR, 0.006; 95% CI, 0.001-0.072; P <.001).  Combined detection of HbA1c and serum magnesium exhibited superior diagnostic efficacy for DR compared with single indicators. Among patients with diabetes, binary logistic regression identified longer diabetes duration (OR, 1.287; 95% CI, 1.197-1.384; P <.001), higher systolic blood pressure (OR, 1.031; 95% CI, 1.006-1.056; P =.016), and higher HbA1c (OR, 1.402; 95% CI, 1.203-1.635; P <.001) as independent risk factors for DR, while magnesium remained inversely associated with DR occurrence (OR, 0.013; 95% CI, 0.000-0.454; P =.017).  For diabetes detection, the combination of HbA1c and magnesium achieved an AUC of 0.870 with 78.7% sensitivity and 90.0% specificity, compared with an AUC of 0.860 for HbA1c alone. For DR detection, the combined model yielded an AUC of 0.760 with 75.3% sensitivity and 66.0% specificity, slightly improving upon HbA1c alone (AUC, 0.750). In diabetic mice, retinal neuroepithelial thickness was significantly reduced ( P <.001), the endothelial-to-pericyte ratio was increased ( P <.01), and both serum and retinal magnesium concentrations were significantly lower than in controls ( P <.05). Study limitations include the single-center retrospective cross-sectional design without patient follow-up, the absence of treatment-status data and blinded assessments, and the inability to determine whether low magnesium is a cause or consequence of diabetic retinopathy. “Combined detection of HbA1c and serum magnesium exhibited superior diagnostic efficacy for DR compared with single indicators,” according to the researchers. This article originally appeared on Ophthalmology Advisor References: Wang Y, Li J, Lin Y, et al. The association between magnesium and diabetic retinopathy: a cross-sectional study.  BMC Ophthalmol. Published online June 22, 2026. doi:10.1186/s12886-026-05020-3