What is Ocular Diabetes?
Excess glucose in the blood for a long time can cause damage to various parts of the body, including the heart, kidneys, blood vessels and small blood vessels in the eyes.
People at greatest risk of developing diabetic retinopathy are those with poor blood sugar control: pregnant women, people with high blood pressure and high levels of fat.
When the blood vessels in the retina are affected by this disease, fluid leaks or closes completely, this is called diabetic retinopathy.
As a result of this disease, the patient begins to experience vision loss when the diabetes has already advanced, so a fundus examination is mandatory and very important to prevent further vision loss in the eye.
Symptoms
In the early stages of optic diabetes there is no visible sign. Therefore, it is important to know that a person can suffer from diabetic retinopathy and not have any visual discomfort.
The progressive decline of a diabetic person can be caused by:
- Presence of fluid accumulated in the central part of the retina.
- Spots obscuring vision due to acute intraocular hemorrhage
The symptoms that usually occur in patients presenting with a picture of optic diabetes are:
- Progressive loss of vision
- Blurred images
- Sudden loss of vision
Early detection and treatment can prevent progression to complete blindness.
Indicated treatment
Surgery is the main treatment for diabetic retinopathy.
This process is called photocoagulation and is used to prevent vessels from leaking or to reduce the size of abnormal vessels.
In many cases, this procedure can be complemented with the injection of substances to reduce inflammation or reduce the growth of these vessels.
In more advanced cases, with intraocular hemorrhage and/or retinal detachment, surgery in the operating room by vitrectomy is the only solution, which is usually performed under local anesthesia.
Results
The laser will help to reduce the edema that are in the anomalous vessels or over ischemic areas. This will prevent progression of the disease to more complicated situations.
Although treatment stops the progression of diabetic retinopathy, it is not a cure. Diabetes is a lifelong condition. Retinal damage and vision loss are still possible in the future, so it is necessary to have more regular eye examinations.