Diabetes
Diabetes
What is diabetes?
Diabetes mellitus, also known as diabetes, is a metabolic disorder which causes high blood sugar or blood glucose. Particular hormones are responsible for moving sugar from the blood to your cells where it will be stored and utilized for energy.
When diagnosed with diabetes, your body is unable to produce enough of these hormones or can’t effectively use the produced hormone. If diabetes is left untreated, it may damage your nerves, eyes, kidneys and other organs. Diabetes is a common disease and has important implications for the short-term and long-term health of sufferers. In particular, it can affect the eyes.
Fluctuations in blood sugar can cause changes in the focusing of the crystalline lens within the eye and may cause temporary visual blurring, particularly if diabetic control is poor. Diabetes can also cause cataracts in young people, or accelerate the development of cataracts in older people.
Diabetic retinopathy is when the small blood vessels at the back of the eye start to leak or become blocked. Ultimately this can lead to new blood vessel formation, which can be very destructive.
What are the symptoms related to diabetic retinopathy?
People who have been diagnosed with diabetic retinopathy may experience the following symptoms, such as:
- Blurry vision
- Fatigue
- Poor night vision
- Floaters or colourless spots or dark strings which are floating in your vision
- Colour vision impairment
- Poor night vision
- Sudden loss of vision
How is diabetic retinopathy treated?
People with diabetes should do a screening examination yearly or more frequently, depending on how the diabetes is controlled. Diabetic retinopathy treatment depends on several factors, including its severity and stage.
Dr Beatty will first ask you to get tighter control of your diabetes mellitus, usually with the help of your physician. Other treatments may include laser treatment (photocoagulation or PRP), anti-VEGF injections and vitrectomy.
Diabetes can also affect other organs. The presence and severity of retinopathy may be an indicator of increased risk of other complications of diabetes such as ischemic heart disease, kidney disease, or diabetic neuropathy (which contributes to male impotence and diabetic foot disease).
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