Association between glycated hemoglobin levels and changes in aqueous humor inflammatory cytokines during sequential cataract surgeries in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus: A retrospective study

Cataract is a common ocular complication of diabetes mellitus (DM), characterized by chronic inflammation and oxidative stress. Sequential bilateral cataract surgery provides a unique model to explore intraocular immune modulation under different systemic metabolic conditions. This study aimed to evaluate the relationship between preoperative glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) levels and inter-eye variations in aqueous humor inflammatory cytokines among patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. A retrospective analysis was performed on 88 patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus who underwent bilateral phacoemulsification cataract surgery with intraocular lens implantation between January 2023 and January 2025. Aqueous humor samples were collected at the beginning of each surgery, and the concentrations of inflammatory cytokines (interleukin-6 [IL-6], interleukin-8 [IL-8], tumor necrosis factor-alpha, monocyte chemoattractant protein-1, and interleukin-10) were measured using a multiplex immunoassay. Patients were stratified into 3 groups according to HbA1c levels (