Diabetes and Your Vision

Patients with diabetes are at a higher risk for developing eye conditions because a high blood sugar level can damage blood vessels in the eye.

Eye Disease Resulting from Diabetes

Over 40 percent of patients diagnosed with diabetes develop some form of eye disease as a result.

These diabetic eye conditions can cause blood or fluid to leak from the retina, or new blood vessels to grow on the surface of the retina. That, in turn, can lead to significant damage to your vision and a decrease in your overall quality of life.

Annual eye exams are a must!

It’s important for patients with diabetes to have dilated eye exams once a year to detect any signs of diabetic eye disease as soon as possible.

You can also minimize your risk of developing diabetic eye disease by keeping your blood sugar and blood pressure under control, eating a healthy diet and exercising regularly.

Diabetic Retinopathy

Diabetic retinopathy is a complication of diabetes that weakens the blood vessels that supply nourishment to the retina inside the eye. These weak vessels can leak, causing a loss of vision.

Changes to your vision may not be noticeable at first. But in its advanced stages, the disease can cause significant and irreversible vision loss. Fortunately, diabetic retinopathy is preventable by controlling blood sugar.

Prevention through regular eye exams

Prevention is the best medicine for this disease. Regular eye exams are very important to detect diabetic retinopathy.

Although damage caused by diabetic retinopathy cannot be corrected, patients diagnosed with the condition can be treated to slow its progression and minimize further vision loss.

Treatment modalities include laser and surgical procedures.

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