Diabetes impacts a huge population on a global level; diabetic people focus all their energy on managing their blood sugar but are ignorant of a silent threat- Diabetic Retinopathy. Diabetic Retinopathy can cause a lot of damage to your eyes and even lead to irreversible loss of vision. The Good News? Early detection is the key. Don't let diabetes steal your sight – take charge of your eye health & learn how to prevent this preventable complication. 

In a conversation with Jagran English, Dr Payal Gupta, Consultant Ophthalmology at Fortis Hospital Greater Noida explained about diabetic retinopathy. 

 
Screening for Diabetic Retinopathy

Common long-term effects of diabetes mellitus on nerves, brain, kidneys, heart and feet are well known. Unfortunately, eye health in diabetic patients is something that is commonly neglected and thus, Diabetic Retinopathy (DR) is one of the major causes of visual disability leading to irreversible blindness in adults worldwide. 
 
What is Diabetic Retinopathy?

Diabetic Retinopathy damages the blood vessels in the retina (the light-sensitive layer at the back of the eye responsible for image formation and transmission to the brain) and results in vision.

How to know if you have Diabetic Retinopathy?

Mild or early changes usually are asymptomatic. Visual symptoms like blurry vision or black spots in the field of vision are usually associated with advanced retinal damage. Therefore screening (examination of an apparently healthy individual, at a stage where there are no symptoms) of all patients with diabetes is the only way to catch the disease in its early phase.
 
What is done in Screening for Diabetic Retinopathy?
 
Screening for DR is done by a dilated retina/fundus examination. During this procedure, pupil dilating drops are instilled in your eye 2-3 times at fifteen-minute intervals and it is examined through an ophthalmoscope which gives a magnified view of the retina and retinal blood vessels. If changes are present your eye doctor might advise further investigations to determine the extent of the damage.
 
When should you get screened for Diabetic Retinopathy?
 
Diabetic patients can have a healthy glycaemic control and yet be at the risk of Diabetic Retinopathy. They must undergo a fundus examination at least once a year. Patients who have been suffering from diabetes for a very long time and have been suffering from uncontrolled blood sugar levels and the presence of comorbidities like hypertension and cardiac disease are observed to be at a higher risk of suffering from Diabetic Retinopathy and should regularly consult their ophthalmologist. Diabetic patients are also more prone to developing early cataracts.
 
What can be done if you have Diabetic Retinopathy?
 
At different stages of Retinopathy, multiple treatment modalities are available for patients suffering from diabetic retinopathy. Initially, you only need to manage a healthy glycaemic control with regular, monitoring by fundus examination. For managing advanced stages of diabetes one can opt for laser treatments, intravitreal injections and lastly and retinal surgery are available but with limited visual prognosis.
 
A multi-pronged approach by the collaboration of the physician, ophthalmologist and the patient is needed to combat this dreaded complication of diabetes. It is the prerogative of the general physician to counsel and refer patients for timely ophthalmological examination to avoid irreversible retinal damage. The ophthalmologist must educate the patients with diabetes about their eye health and encourage them for regular fundus examinations. Lastly, it is the responsibility of the patient to keep themselves updated about their disease and be motivated for screenings even when disease symptoms are not present.

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