Diabetes is a chronic disease with the potential to affect all organs and organ systems. One of the complications is diabetic retinopathy. It involves changes to the retinal blood vessels that can cause them to bleed or leak fluid, impairing vision. About 60 per cent of diabetics develop retinopathy during the first 20 years of the disease.
Diabetic retinopathy is the most common reason of vision loss among diabetics and the leading cause of blindness among the adult population. There may be no or only mild symptoms at the beginning but eventually significant impairment of the vision or even blindness can develop.
Potentially harmful changes often go unnoticed for a long time. Annual screening examination of your eyes is advocated in order to detect diabetic retinopathy at an early stage.
Remember, diabetes doesn’t necessarily lead to vision loss. Careful management of your diabetes is the only way to prevent or at least limit eye complications.
Once the retina is damaged, it usually is irreversible. Early detection, timely treatment and rigorous follow-up can reduce the risk of blindness by 95 per cent.
Diabetic retinopathy can be treated and the progression slowed down with several therapeutic modalities including medication, laser therapy and eye surgery. However, treatment of retinopathy usually cannot restore loss of vision.
Stay on TRACK to protect your vision
T — Take your medication as prescribed by your doctor
R — Reach and maintain healthy weight
A — Add more physical activity to your daily routine
C — Control your ABCs (HbA1C, blood pressure, cholesterol levels)
K — Kick your smoking habit
Symptoms of diabetic retinopathy
Spots or dark strings floating in your vision (floaters)
Impaired colour vision
Dark or empty areas in your vision
Complete blindness
Amber Clinics invites you to join its Amber Diabetes Registry or Amber Diabetes Patient Education Programme. Its highly specialised interdisciplinary Diabetes Care Team looks forward to taking care of you.
As Amber Clinics considers Diabetes Registry and Interactive Diabetes Education a corporate social responsibility, everybody can attend both the programmes free of cost.
