To reduce avoidable blindness, un-operated cataract should be addressed. Primary and secondary eye care systems should be strengthened to improve the care of blinding eye diseases in Qatar.

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Universal and periodic eye screening of patients with diabetes is recommended in Qatar. Health promotion for primary prevention and resource review are needed for early detection and management of sight-threatening DR.

BackgroundOverexpression of SLMAP gene has been associated with diabetes and endothelial dysfunction of macro- and micro-blood vessels. In this study our primary objective is to explore the role of SLMAP gene polymorphisms in the susceptibility of type 2 diabetes (T2DM) with or without diabetic retinopathy (DR) in the Qatari population.MethodsA total of 342 Qatari subjects (non-diabetic controls and T2DM patients with or without DR) were genotyped for SLMAP gene polymorphisms (rs17058639 C > T; rs1043045 C > T and rs1057719 A > G) using Taqman SNP genotyping assay.ResultsSLMAP rs17058639 C > T polymorphism was associated with the presence of DR among Qataris with T2DM. One-way ANOVA and multiple logistic regression analysis showed SLMAP SNP rs17058639 C > T as an independent risk factor for DR development. SLMAP rs17058639 C > T polymorphism also had a predictive role for the severity of DR. Haplotype Crs17058639Trs1043045Ars1057719 was associated with the increased risk for DR among Qataris with T2DM.ConclusionsThe data suggests the potential role of SLMAP SNPs as a risk factor for the susceptibility of DR among T2DM patients in the Qatari population.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12967-015-0411-6) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

The results of our study indicate that ACE gene polymorphism is not significantly associated with bronchial asthma or with its severity among Egyptian adults.