Diabetic Retinopathy

Diabetes without treatment can lead to short as well as long-term health complications, including hypoglycemia, nerve damage, vision problems and heart disease. Vision problems may include diabetic retinopathy, cataract, diabetic macular edema (DME) and glaucoma.

Diabetic retinopathy influences blood vessels in the light-sensitive tissue called the retina that lines the back of the eye. It is the foremost cause of vision loss among individuals with diabetes and the driving cause of vision impairment and blindness among working-age adults.

Within the starting stages, people with diabetic retinopathy may not notice their vision changing. Diabetics sometimes experience rapid changes in blood sugar that can incidentally cause blurry vision even when retinopathy is not present. If a person notices a few specks or spots floating in his visual field, this may cruel he has developed proliferative diabetic retinopathy, the growth of abnormal new blood vessels on the retina. High blood sugar levels have been connected in studies to retinal blood vessel abnormalities. Blurred vision may occur when the macula--the small area at the center of the retina--swells when it fills with fluid that has spilled from retinal blood vessels. Since damage to the eye often develops gradually, early detection of diabetes and control of blood sugar through diet and medications can make a crucial difference in sparing vision. 

The major risk factors for developing diabetic retinopathy are high levels of blood glucose, pregnancy, hypertension, high serum lipid and diabetic kidney disease. Diabetic retinopathy can be detected during a dilated eye exam that includes: visual acuity testing, tonometry, pupil dilation, optical coherence tomography (OCT).

Controlling blood glucose levels can significantly help to prevent diabetes retinopathy and lower the chance of developing it. Heart disease risk factors also influence retinopathy risk which includes smoking, high blood pressure and high cholesterol levels.

There are several effective treatments for diabetic retinopathy which includes a microsurgery called vitrectomy for repair of eyes with extensive damage and a laser photocoagulation for moderate stages. Injectable and oral medications that act on abnormal blood vessels to control diabetic retinopathy are presently in improvement. Early detection of diabetic retinopathy would be a key to the effectiveness of these treatments.

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