AIM:To explore the potentially beneficial clinical effects of traditional Chinese medicine(TCM)combined with photocoagulation for diabetic retinopathy(DR).METHODS:Chinese patients with DR were divided into two groups.A joint treatment group received both the TCM ziyinliangxuesanyutang and photocoagulation,while a control group received only photocoagulation laser treatment.Visual acuity tests,visual field retinal sensitivity tests,and fundus fluorescein angiography(to measure neovascular regression)were performed.Vision was compared between the two groups 1 month,6,and 12 months after treatment.RESULTS:Twelve months after treatment,the recovery of visual acuity(62.3% vs 43.1%,P=0.037)and retinal sensitivity [17.0±3.7 decibels(dB)vs 14.9±3.7dB,P=0.002] as well as neovascular regression(67.2% vs 48.3%,P=0.036)in the joint treatment group were all significantly greater than that of the control group.CONCLUSION:Compared with laser treatment alone,the joint application of TCM and photocoagulation is shown to be more effective than DR treatment method.