Diabetes can have devastating effects on many parts of the body, including the eyes. For this reason, it’s important for those suffering from diabetes to undergo regular eye exams. This ensures that any issues with the eye are found early and can be treated effectively.
How Often Should Diabetics Receive Eye Exams?
Patients with diabetes should be undergoing a comprehensive eye exam at least once a year. This exam should include dilation of the pupils to ensure that any eye issues caused by diabetes are noticed. If diabetes-related eye conditions do arise, comprehensive eye exams may need to become more frequent to ensure adequate treatment.
How Does Diabetes Affect the Eye?
Diabetes can affect just about every part of the eye, but complications involving the retina are most common because high blood sugar levels can cause damage to the blood vessels in the retina. This damage is called diabetic retinopathy, which can be either proliferative or non-proliferative.
What Is Non-Proliferative Retinopathy?
Non-proliferative retinopathy, also called background retinopathy, is when the damaged blood vessels begin leaking blood and other substances into the retina, causing it to swell. This swelling can cause loss of vision, including blurred vision, floaters, dark spots in vision, and poor night vision. However, early non-proliferative retinopathy may go unnoticed by those suffering from it, thus the need for frequent eye exams.
What Is Proliferative Retinopathy?
Proliferative retinopathy is the advanced form of retinopathy. It is characterized by the growth of new, abnormal blood vessels on the retina. These vessels will usually bleed into the vitreous, causing any degree of impairment from a few floaters to visual loss. In severe cases, the new vessels will undergo traction on the retina resulting in a retinal detachment, leading to severe vision loss.
If you are diabetic and need an eye exam or believe you may be suffering from diabetic retinopathy, contact us today.