Diabetic Retinopathy

Diabetic retinopathy is the result of damage to the tiny blood vessels that nourish the retina. They leak blood and other fluids that cause swelling of retinal tissue and clouding of vision. The condition usually affects both eyes.

Signs and symptoms: . Spots or dark strings floating in your vision (floaters) . Blurred vision . Fluctuating vision . Impaired color vision . Dark or empty areas in your vision . Vision loss

Diagnosis: In the early stages, diabetic retinopathy does not cause any noticeable symptoms. Therefore, it tends to be diagnosed as a result of a diabetic eye screening test.The person should attend for eye screening test.The screening results may show either: 1.No retinopathy 2.Back ground retinopathy also called stage one retinopathy 3.degrees of referable retinopathy

Treamemt: Prevention of diabetic retinopathy is the most important step to take for anyone with diabetes. Researchers have found that diabetic patients who are able to maintain appropriate blood sugar and blood pressure levels have fewer eye problems than those with poor control. Diet and exercise play important roles in the overall health of people with diabetes. Diabetic retinopathy is treated in many ways depending on the stage of the disease and the specific problem that requires attention. . Laser eye surgery called pan retinal photocoagulation (PRP) is one treatment choice to prevent the blood vessels from leaking, or to get rid of the growth of abnormal, fragile vessels.

Epidamology: The prevalence of diabetic retinopathy and its relationship to a number of risk factors were examined in a population-based study in the Veneto region of North East Italy. The prevalence of retinopathy was significantly related (p less than 0.001) to the type of diabetes and was found predominantly in Type 1 (46.2%) and insulin-treated Type 2 (45.9%) subjects and to a lesser degree in non-insulin-treated patients (24.6%).. No significant relationships were found with family history of diabetes, alcohol intake, smoking habits, cholesterol, triglycerides, and serum uric acid.