Diabetes can affect eye health when blood glucose, also known as blood sugar, is too high.
When these diseases are early, they often have no symptoms. Photo: Shutterstock.
High blood glucose levels can be a precursor to some eye difficulties in diabetic patients. These conditions include diabetic retinopathy, diabetic macular edema, cataracts, and glaucoma.
Generally, patients with diabetes They develop low vision or even blindness. So it’s important to take steps to prevent or stop diabetic eye disease from progressing by taking care of your diabetes.
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control blood glucose;
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blood pressure;
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cholesterol;
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stop smoking cigarettes;
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Have a dilated eye exam once a year.
Once the damage begins, there are usually no warning signs of diabetic eye disease or vision loss.
So a comprehensive dilated eye exam helps your doctor find and treat eye problems early, even before significant vision loss.
How does diabetes affect my eyes?
When people change their health care plan diabetes or medicines for diabetes sometimes their vision is blurred for a few days or weeks.
High blood glucose can change fluid levels or cause the tissues in your eyes that help you focus to swell, causing blurred vision. This type of blurred vision is temporary and goes away as the glucose level returns to normal.
If your blood glucose level stays high for too long, it can damage the blood vessels at the back of your eyes.
This damage can start during prediabetes, when your glucose level is higher than normal, but not high enough to be diagnosed. diabetes. Fluid can leak from damaged blood vessels causing swelling.
New weak blood vessels may also begin to form. These blood vessels can bleed into the middle part of the eye, form scar tissue, or cause pressure to rise to a dangerous level in the inner part of the eye.
The four eye diseases that can pose a threat to sight are:
diabetic retinopathy
During the early stage, blood vessels may weaken, bulge, or leak fluid into the retina. This stage is known as nonproliferative diabetic retinopathy.
Now, it is likely that some blood vessels will close, causing the proliferation of new blood vessels on the surface of the retina, causing serious vision problems.
About one in three people with diabetes over 40 years of age already have some symptoms of diabetic retinopathy
diabetic macular edema
The diabetes causes swelling of the macula, known as diabetic macular edema. Over time, this disease can destroy clear vision, causing partial vision loss or blindness.
Macular edema usually develops in people who already have other signs of retinopathy.
glaucoma
It is a group of eye diseases that can damage the optic nerve (the bundle of nerves that connects the eye to the brain).
The diabetes doubles the chance of getting glaucoma, which can cause vision loss and blindness if left untreated.
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people with diabetes They are more likely to have cloudy lenses. Cloudy lenses are known as cataracts.
people with diabetes may develop cataracts at younger ages than people who do not.
Who is most likely to develop diabetic eye disease?
anyone with diabetes You may develop diabetic eye disease. Your risk is increased if left untreated:
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high blood glucose level
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high blood pressure
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High blood cholesterol and smoking can also increase the risk of developing diabetic eye disease.
The diabetes that occurs only during pregnancy, known as diabetes gestational, does not normally cause eye problems. Researchers still don’t know for sure why this is.
Your chances of developing diabetic eye disease increase the longer you’ve had diabetes.
Consider starting testing if:
Diabetes Type 1, annual within 5 years from diagnosis.
Diabetes Type 2, annual checkups right after diagnosis.
Diabetes Gestational: women with diabetes type 1 and type 2 need to have an eye exam before becoming pregnant or in the first 3 months of pregnancy.
What are the symptoms of diabetic eye diseases?
Especially with diabetic retinopathy, you may not feel pain or have vision changes as damage begins to build up inside the eye.
When symptoms do occur, they may include:
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blurred or wavy vision
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frequent vision changes, sometimes from day to day
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dark areas or vision loss
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poor color vision
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black spots or dark filaments (also known as floaters)
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flashes of light
Talk to your eye doctor if you have any of these symptoms.
When should I see a doctor right away?
Call your doctor right away if you notice any sudden changes in your vision, including flashes of light, more black spots (floaters) than normal, or if you feel a curtain being drawn over your eyes. These vision changes may be symptoms of retinal detachment, which is a medical emergency.
A comprehensive dilated eye exam is suggested to be the best way to detect eye problems caused by diabetes.
Also, the doctor:
The specialist may also suggest other tests, depending on your medical history, as well as suggest eye exams more than once a year, in addition to carefully monitoring your diabetes.
Treatment
Doctors can treat late-stage eye problems with medicine, laser treatments, surgery, or a combination of these options.
Medicines
Your doctor may treat your eyes with anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) medicines, such as aflibercept, bevacizumab, or ranibizumab.
These medicines block the growth of abnormal blood vessels in the eye.
Anti-VEGF medicines can stop fluid leakage, which can help treat diabetic macular edema.
laser treatment
Laser treatment, also known as photocoagulation, involves making small burns in the eye with a beam of light. This method treats blood vessels that are leaking fluid and edema or fluid buildup.
There are two types of laser treatment:
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Scattered laser, also known as panretinal photocoagulation (PRP), which covers a larger area of the retina. This method treats the growth of abnormal blood vessels, which is known as proliferative diabetic retinopathy.
Vitrectomy
Vitrectomy is a surgery that removes the transparent, gelatinous material that fills the inner space of the eye, known as the vitreous humor. The procedure treats serious bleeding or scar tissue problems caused by proliferative diabetic retinopathy.
Scar tissue can cause the retina to detach from the tissue behind it, like wallpaper peeling off the wall. A retina that becomes loose or detaches completely can cause blindness.
Cataract lens surgery
In a surgical center or hospital, the doctor can remove the cloudy lens of the eye, where the cataract has formed, and replace it with an artificial lens. Generally, after cataract surgery, most people have better vision.
What if I have already lost some vision from diabetes?
Ask your eye care professional to help you find a low vision and rehabilitation clinic.
Specialized eye professionals can help you manage vision loss that cannot be corrected with glasses, contact lenses, medicine, or surgery.
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