Diabetic Eye Disease
Diabetes, especially after prolonged duration, may produce diabetic retinopathy in some patients. This is a serious and potentially blinding eye condition. Diabetic retinopathy is the number one cause of legal blindness in the country for patients under 65.
Diabetes affects the part of the eye called the retina. The retina is nerve tissue that lines the back of the eye. Visual images are formed on the retina much like on the film in a camera. Diabetes damages the retina by affecting its blood vessels. Some vessels become plugged, while others leak fluid. Blurring of vision may be caused by fluid accumulating, producing a thickening of the retina called macular edema. Sometimes, abnormal blood vessels grow along the surface of the retina and into the vitreous (the clear gel that fills the eye). Bleeding into the eye (vitreous hemorrhage) from these newly formed blood vessels and scarring or detachment of the retina are the main ways that diabetes causes severe impairment of vision. Regular eye examinations and appropriate laser therapy have been shown to prevent visual loss in many cases. Laser treatment reduces the risk of blindness with certain stages of diabetic retinopathy.
Diabetic patients should have periodic eye examinations by an ophthalmologist, at least once a year. The best prevention for keeping diabetic eye disease from progressing is maintaining blood sugar levels consistently within the range set by the physician managing the diabetes.
Diabetes, especially after prolonged duration, may produce diabetic retinopathy in some patients. This is a serious and potentially blinding eye condition. Diabetic retinopathy is the number one cause of legal blindness in the country for patients under 65.
Diabetes affects the part of the eye called the retina. The retina is nerve tissue that lines the back of the eye. Visual images are formed on the retina much like on the film in a camera. Diabetes damages the retina by affecting its blood vessels. Some vessels become plugged, while others leak fluid. Blurring of vision may be caused by fluid accumulating, producing a thickening of the retina called macular edema. Sometimes, abnormal blood vessels grow along the surface of the retina and into the vitreous (the clear gel that fills the eye). Bleeding into the eye (vitreous hemorrhage) from these newly formed blood vessels and scarring or detachment of the retina are the main ways that diabetes causes severe impairment of vision. Regular eye examinations and appropriate laser therapy have been shown to prevent visual loss in many cases. Laser treatment reduces the risk of blindness with certain stages of diabetic retinopathy.
Diabetic patients should have periodic eye examinations by an ophthalmologist, at least once a year. The best prevention for keeping diabetic eye disease from progressing is maintaining blood sugar levels consistently within the range set by the physician managing the diabetes.
 Macular Edema |
 Severe Proliferative Diabetic Retinopathy |
