This story was originally published daily in the Daily Health Network Site Diabetes.
If you have diabetes, you should already be aware of the risk of diabetic retinopathy. Unfortunately, common complications can lead to vision problems, and in extreme cases even blindness.
It doesn’t have to happen that way. Diabetic retinopathy is preventable, treatable, and even reversible.
That’s exactly why annual diabetic eye exams are so important. Identifying eye problems before affecting your vision gives you the best chance to fix damage and prevent your vision from getting worse.
Early diabetic retinopathy has no symptoms
The retina is the part of the eye that actually senses light and has many small blood vessels that are very sensitive to high blood sugar levels and other metabolic dysfunction, especially hypertension. These small blood vessels are one of the most vulnerable parts of the diabetic body.
In diabetic retinopathy, these small blood vessels begin to bulge and explode, causing blood to leak into the eye. As the condition progresses, the bleeding will worsen and the retina will begin to increase both scar tissue and new abnormal blood vessels, which can have a major impact on vision.
It is important to understand that early stages of diabetic retinopathy usually do not affect vision. Unfortunately, many people with diabetes are experiencing the first stage of retinopathy, and they don’t know about it.
If your vision is waiting until you actually suffer a visit to an ophthalmologist (ophthalmologist), you could be making a big mistake. Those who postpone regular exams will risk permanent damage to their eyes.
Can treat and reverse early diabetic retinopathy
In the early stages of diabetic retinopathy, no special eye treatment is generally required. It is recommended to use diet, exercise, or medication to improve risk factors for metabolism, namely blood glucose, blood pressure, and in some cases cholesterol levels.
Simply put, the first treatment for diabetic retinopathy is good diabetes management.
Dr. Ben Szirth, director of Applied Vision Research and Ophthalmic Telemedicine at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, says it is often possible to even reverse the early stages of diabetic retinopathy. Reverting blood sugar and blood pressure to a healthy range can help your body cure the bleeding characteristic of diabetic retinopathy.
“The best thing to do is prevention,” says Dr. Szirth. “Key is an annual screening.”
Without screening, not all patients are that lucky. More serious damage may be permanent. Therefore, regular screening and early intervention are extremely important. If eye damage is detected early, it may be possible to treat it before it worsens.
Targeted treatment for the eye is usually not recommended until late stages. At that point, you may be asked to frequently undergo comprehensive eye examinations every few months to assess the progression of the condition. Ophthalmologists have several treatment options, including laser photocoagulation therapy and anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (anti-VEGF) drugs.
Comprehensive Diabetic Eye Test
The most important thing to take away from this article is the need for regular, comprehensive eye examinations. This is the best way to detect and treat problems before causing irreversible damage. If you’re a little worried about your vision, and clicking on this article, it’s probably a good idea to schedule an appointment as soon as possible.
To be clear, we are talking about special tests designed for diabetic patients. These exams allow an ophthalmologist or optometrist to expand students to give them a clearer view of the retina.
This is a breakdown from the American Diabetes Association (ADA) on what to expect in the four parts of a routine diabetic eye test.
- Eye test The doctor will use the eye chart to determine the overall vision and whether you need glasses/contacts or a current prescription update.
- Tonomatories This test measures eye pressure. High pressure means you are at risk for glaucoma.
- Retinal Imaging Imaging devices allow ophthalmologists to detect very subtle changes to eye health.
- Extended eye examination After applying eye drops that enlarge the pupil, the ophthalmologist can look behind the eye to detect swelling in the retina, leaky blood vessels, nerve damage, cataracts, and eye diseases common in people with diabetes. This is the most important test for people with diabetes.
None of these tests are painful. If your optometrist doesn’t know about your diabetes, they will not perform the tests necessary to diagnose diabetic retinopathy. If you are scheduling a comprehensive eye exam, make sure you have diabetes completely clear and expand and require a comprehensive eye examination for diabetics.
How often do I need to have my eye examed?
Diabetes and Eye Health Officials recommend that most diabetics undergo a comprehensive eye test each year. In other words, once a year. Your own healthcare provider and insurance company will assume you need an annual examination.
There are potential exceptions to this rule of thumb. If previous trials have no evidence of diabetic retinopathy and blood glucose levels are in good control, the ADA suggests that with the approval of an optometrist or ophthalmologist, you can wait up to two years to take the next comprehensive eye exam.
If you have a history of retinopathy, your optometrist or ophthalmologist may ask you to take the exam more frequently than once a year.
If you are not used to diabetes: Schedule your first eye exam
If you are diagnosed with diabetes very recently, the ADA recommends these guidelines for scheduling your first eye exam.
For newly diagnosed adults with diabetes:
- Adults with new cases of type 1 diabetes are unlikely to develop diabetic retinopathy immediately after diagnosis. They should undergo their first comprehensive eye test five years after the onset of diabetes.
- Newly diagnosed adults with type 2 diabetes should schedule eye tests immediately. Approximately 20% of adults with new cases of type 2 already have a measure of retinopathy.
For newly diagnosed diabetic patients:
- Newly diagnosed children with type 1 diabetes are unlikely to develop diabetic retinopathy immediately after diagnosis. They should undergo their first comprehensive eye test five years after the onset of diabetes. There is one exception to this rule. These are children who are experiencing adolescence.
- Adolescents accelerate the development of diabetic retinopathy. Children with type 1 diabetes who have never had a diabetic eye test should undergo their first test at adolescence or at age 11.
- Newly diagnosed children with type 2 diabetes should schedule eye tests immediately.
Are you pregnant or planning to do it? Take the eye exam!
If you are pregnant or are about to conceive, it is important to know that your pregnancy represents a special case that may require special treatment. Pregnancy can significantly promote the progression of diabetic retinopathy, and do not use anti-VEGF drugs, the most important pharmaceutical treatment during pregnancy.
The ADA believes that all women with type 1 or type 2 diabetes are pregnant or planning to get pregnant should evaluate their eyes. If you show evidence of retinopathy, your ophthalmologist may want to check your eyes multiple times during pregnancy. You may be asked to even set up stricter blood glucose targets to reduce the likelihood of damage.
Women who develop gestational diabetes are not considered at risk.
Conclusion
Regular comprehensive eye examinations are extremely important for people with diabetes. Early detection and treatment of diabetic retinopathy can help prevent vision loss and maintain quality of life. It is important for people with diabetes to work closely with their doctors to manage their illness and protect their vision.
Annual eye examinations are the best way to detect problems before causing irreversible damage. If you want to prevent, slow, stop, or reverse diabetic retinopathy, it’s time to act now.
