**6. Conclusions**

Diabetes mellitus is clearly a major health problem in an increasingly aging population worldwide. Diabetic retinopathy is a complex complication of this disease, which is influenced by a range of local and systemic factors. Potential non-invasive biomarkers derived from innovative imaging modalities as introduced above offer precious information about the morphologic as well as functional state of the diabetic retina, which is not detectable on routine clinical examination. These promising biomarkers may allow personalized medicine with treatment schedules tailored to patients' individual needs. Furthermore, as the population principally affected by DR comprises working-age individuals, understanding of the pathophysiology of the disease and developing appropriate therapy are essential to halt decrease in productivity and an increasing need for social support. Besides this significant economic benefit, the final validation of these biomarkers in prospective studies is expected to contribute decisively to the designing of clinical trials to identify new drug candidates that may prevent DR in the initial disease stages. Finally, and most importantly, this could result in a dramatic quality-of-life improvement for patients with diabetes and their families.
