To examine the early differences in the thicknesses of the macula and retinal nerve fibre layer (RNFL) by Stratus optical coherence tomography in patients with diabetes mellitus. Thirty-one normal participants without any optic nerve and retinal diseases (control), 45 diabetic patients without diabetic retinopathy (NDR), and 24 diabetic patients with preproliferative diabetic retinopathy (PPDR), who did not have clinically significant macular oedema, were used for the macular thickness measurements. Thirty control participants, 45 patients classified as NDR, and 22 patients classified as PPDR were used for the RNFL thickness measurements. In patients with NDR, macula was significantly thinner than that of control eyes. In patients with PPDR, the mean RNFL thickness was significantly thinner but the macula was thicker than that of control eyes. In women with NDR, the macula was significantly thinner than that of men with NDR and that of normal women. In men with PPDR, the RNFL thickness was significantly thinner than that of the control eyes. At the early stage of diabetic retinopathy, the maculas and RNFL thicknesses are altered. The macular and RNFL thicknesses are different in men and women.
