Diabetic retinopathy (patient information): Difference between revisions
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Revision as of 14:12, 26 January 2010
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Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]; Jinhui Wu, MD
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What is diabetic retinopathy?
Diabetic retinopathy is a complication of long-term diabetes and a leading cause of blindness. It is caused by changes in the blood vessels of the retina. At the early time, patients with diabetic retinopathy may not notice changes to the vision. But over time, diabetic retinopathy can get worse and cause floaters, shadows or missing areas of vision, difficulty seeing at nighttime, even vision loss or blindness. Diabetic retinopathy can affects both eyes. Dilated eye exam and fluorescein angiography test are necessary for the disgnosis. Treatments include quitting smoking, tight control of blood sugar, blood pressure, and cholesterol, laser eye surgery and vitrectomy. For patients with diabetes, taking regular eye check under the ophthalmologist's direction is very necessary and important.
How do I know if I have diabetic retinopathy and what are the symptoms of diabetic retinopathy?
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Normal vision. Courtesy NIH National Eye Institute
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The same view with diabetic retinopathy.
Early diabetic retinopathy does not have any symptoms. With the devolpment, people may notice one or more of the following symptoms:
- Bleeding
- Blurred vision and gradual vision loss, even blindness.
- Floaters
- Shadows or missing areas of vision
- Difficulty seeing at nighttime
Other health problems may also cause these symptoms. Only a ophthalmologist and physician can tell for sure. A person with any of these symptoms should tell the doctor so that the problems can be diagnosed and treated as early as possible.
Who is at risk for diabetic retinopathy?
- All people with diabetes, both type 1 and type 2, are at risk.
- The longer the patient has diabetes, the more likely he/she will get diabetic retinopathy.
How to know you have diabetic retinopathy?
- Visual acuity test: This is a basic test for eyes, which is to measure how well you see at various distances.
- Dilated eye exam: During this test, drops are placed in your eyes to widen the pupils. Then, your eye care professional uses a special magnifying lens to examine your retina, optic nerve and other problems.
- Retinal photography or fluorescein angiography test: During this test, the doctor injects a special dye into the patient's arm and collects pictures as the dye passes through the blood vessels in the retina. The test can identify any leaking blood vessels and recommend treatment.
When to seek urgent medical care?
If you have diabetes and you have not seen an ophthalmologist in the past year, you need to see the ophthalmologist for a regular check. Call your doctor if any of the following symptoms are new or are becoming worse:
- You cannot see well in dim light.
- You have blind spots.
- You have double vision
- Your vision is blurry and you cannot focus.
- You have pain in one of your eyes.
- You are having headaches.
- You see spots floating in your eyes.
- You cannot see things on the side of your field of vision.
- You see shadows.
Treatment options
- Keeping a healthy lifestyle, quitting smoking.
- Treatment of diabetes: Tight control of blood sugar, blood pressure, and cholesterol.
- Drugs: Now doctors inject corticosteroids into the eyeball to prevent abnormal blood vessels from growing.
- Laser eye surgery: Laser surgery includes focal and scatter laser treatment. Focal laser photocoagulation is used to treat macular edema. And scatter laser treatment treats a large area of your retina. Before the procedure, the doctor dilates your pupil and applies drops to numb the eye. Then the doctor uses laser to keep vessels from leaking or to get rid of abnormal, fragile vessels. After surgery, you need to wear a pair of sunglasses and someone will drive you home.
- Vitrectomy: Vitrectomy is used to treat bleeding in the center of the eye and to repair retinal detachment. During this procedure, after anesthesia, the doctor makes a tiny incision in your eye and replaces the vitreous gel that is clouded with blood with a salt solution. After the surgery, You may wear an eye patch for a few days or weeks to protect your eye. Also, eyedrops are needed to prevent from infection.
Diseases with similar symptoms
- Primary detachment of retina
Where to find medical care for diabetic retinopathy?
Directions to Hospitals Treating diabetic retinopathy
Prevention of diabetic retinopathy
- Tight control of blood sugar, blood pressure, and cholesterol
- Quitting smoking
- Avoiding resistance or high-impact exercises
- Begin having eye examinations as follows and take regular check yearly under your ophthalmologist's direction
- Children older than 10 years who have had diabetes for 3 - 5 years or more
- Adults and adolescents with type 2 diabetes soon after diagnosis
- Adolescents and adults with type 1 diabetes within 5 years of diagnosis
- If you are beginning a new exercise program or are planning to get pregnant, have your eyes examined.
What to expect (Outook/Prognosis)?
Prognosis of diabetic retinopathy depends on:
- Whether your blood sugar and blood pressure are controlled well.
- Whether your retinopathy is treated early
Copyleft Sources
http://nihseniorhealth.gov/diabeticretinopathy/toc.html
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/001212.htm