Special Focus on the Eyes for Diabetes Patients

Patients with diabetes may have their blood sugar well under control, but that doesn’t mean they’re in the clear. Diabetes affects all areas of the body, including your eyes. Much of the issue diabetes makes for the eye has to do with the retina. Here, light images get picked up by light-sensitive tissues — turning it all into data interpreted by the brain.

Diabetes also causes problems with blood pressure, which causes complications to the eyes. Low pressure due to blockages ultimately culminates in oxygen-starved blood vessels near your retina. High blood pressure can cause these same blood vessels to burst or multiply. It can also increase the risks of glaucoma and cataracts for patients, depending on whether you’re suffering from types 1 or 2.

If you have diabetes, it’s essential to request a diabetic eye exam to stay well ahead of these unique vision problems.

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Common Diabetic Eye Complications

Prevention and early detection is crucial, so your optometrist will look for signs of eye conditions stemming from diabetes and advise you on how to preserve your vision.

Nonproliferative Diabetic Retinopathy (NPDR)

Nonproliferative diabetic retinopathy (NPDR) is the early stage of diabetic retinopathy. At this stage, damage to your blood vessels causes them to start leaking.

Blood and fluid leaking into the retina can cause the macula to swell. The macula is a particularly sensitive part of the retina responsible for your ability to see faces, text, and fine details. Sometimes these blood vessels become blocked, preventing oxygen from reaching the cells in the macula, resulting in macular ischemia. Macular swelling from excess blood can trigger diabetic macular edema (DME).

If NPDR advances, it can become proliferative diabetic retinopathy (PDR).

Proliferative Diabetic Retinopathy (PDR)

PDR comes with a new complication called neovascularization. High pressure in the retinal veins results in new veins sprouting off throughout the retina. Blood leaking into the inner fluid chamber of your eye can discolor images, and scar tissue can disrupt the even surface of your retina.

Diabetic Macular Edema (DME)

When the macula swells because of highly pressurized veins running through it, you might experience at least partial vision loss. Images reaching your brain could look washed out and blurry. DME may cause vision loss, and it can develop early or late into diabetic retinopathy.

Diabetes & Glaucoma

Patients with diabetes are at an increased risk of developing glaucoma. Diabetes can increase pressure in the eye’s veins, causing blood to leak into the aqueous chamber, which gradually increases your eye’s internal pressure.

Our Retinal Camera for Diabetic Patients

Patients with diabetes have unique needs. We use the best tools and processes to keep these sensitive under keen supervision. Our retinal camera comes complete with optical coherence tomography (OCT) and fundus photography to stay ahead of the effects of diabetic retinopathy.

Our investment in advanced diagnostic technology allows us to provide superior service to our patients with diabetes. These pictures tell us a more in-depth story of your ocular health.

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