Diabetic Retinopathy – Symptoms, Treatment and Prevention
When the blood vessels in the eyes get damaged due diabetes, the disease is known as Diabetic retinopathy. Due to the damage of these blood vessels, the visibility gets affected. Sometimes, there is complete loss of vision due to this disease.
The light and the sensitive tissue located at the back of the eye called the retina gets affected the most. This disease is classified into two categories- non-proliferative diabetic retinopathy and proliferative diabetic retinopathy.
The first category is characterized by major changes in the blood vessels of the retina. The blood vessels become weak and porous. At times the capillaries may also get blocked.
On the other hand, the other category is characterized by the abnormal growth of weak blood vessels from the retina. This results in vitreous gel that completely fills the eyes.
There are several symptoms of this disease. However, in the initial stages, there are hardly any symptoms found. Only a thorough examination of the retina would reveal about the disease. The symptoms may be seen prior to the noticeable vision loss. There can be a sudden onset of loss of vision accompanied with haemorrhage or retinal detachment. Therefore all patients suffering from diabetes should be careful.
The minor symptoms may include eye pain, blurred vision especially while reading, an empty black spot at the centre of the vision and many more.
They should thoroughly go for their eye examination at frequent intervals. The blood glucose levels should be kept under full control in order to prevent the occurrence of Diabetic retinopathy.
If treatment of this disease is done at an early stage, the patient would have reduced chances of vision loss. For this early diagnosis is must. The Doctor may conduct a Laser treatment. This is an important treatment for Diabetic retinopathy where beams of light from a laser are given to the retina where the leaks occurred. This seals the blood vessels of the retina and prevents further leakage.
Patients who undergo this surgery can develop severe bleeding. In such cases, a surgery has to be conducted in order to remove the blood and the scar tissues.
Apart from this, steroid medication can also be injected into the eyes of the patient. This is a great alternative to the laser treatment.
We are sure that this article would help both the patient of diabetes as well as the patient of the Diabetic retinopathy to a great extent.
will u tell me,is diabetic retinopathy dependent upon the type of diabetic retinopathy?