Diabetic Eye Diseases and Care
What is Diabetic Retinopathy?
Diabetic retinopathy is an eye disease caused by complications of diabetes. After 10 or 15 years most diabetic people have signs of mild damage to the back of the eye that is called retinopathy.
Diabetic retinopathy is a common cause of vision loss but that vision loss can be minimized by early diagnosis and carefully designed treatments.
Diabetes causes damage to the blood vessels that nourish the retina, the seeing part at the back of the eye. Damage to the retina is caused when blood vessels:
- Expand and begin to leak
- Develop brush-like branches
- Break and cause bleeding
Once the leaking blood damages or scars the retina, the image sent to the brain becomes blurry. Rapid changes in blood sugar can also cause fluctuating vision in both eyes even if retinopathy is not present.
How is it Treated?
The physicians of EyeCare Associates of Texas, P.A. repair the ongoing damage by focusing a laser on the damaged retina to stop the bleeding by sealing the blood vessels
In advanced cases of Diabetic Retinopathy a Vitrectomy may be recommended. In this case EyeCare Associates of Texas, P.A. networks with only the best Retinal Specialists in the area to whom you would be referred for further treatment.
People who have diabetes have a high risk of developing diabetic retinopathy. If you are a diabetic, it's very important to have your eyes examined regularly by an experienced ophthalmologist and to report any change in vision immediately.
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