Services: Retina
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High blood sugar from diabetes can cause damage to the blood vessels in the retina. This damage is called retinopathy.
- In its early stages it's called . This is when tiny blood vessels within the retina leak blood or fluid causing the retina to swell or become thickened. When this occurs in the central part of the retina, your vision will he reduced or blurred.
- is when abnormal new vessels grow on the retina or optic nerve. The main cause of PDR is closure of retinal blood vessels, which prevents adequate blood flow. The retina responds by growing new blood vessels in an attempt to supply blood to the area where the original vessels closed. The new abnormal vessels do not resupply the retina with normal blood flow, and are often accompanied by scar tissue that may cause wrinkling or detachment of the retina. PDR may cause more severe vision loss because it can affect both central and peripheral vision. Some of these new vessels may leak and bleed into the eye causing sudden vision loss. This alone does not cause permanent vision loss. When the blood clears vision may return to normal unless the macula has been damaged.
 A medical eye examination is the only way to find changes inside your eye. If diabetic retinopathy is found a test, called flourescein angiography, may be ordered. This test can detect where fluid may be leaking by injecting a dye into your arm and taking photos of this dye going through the eye. Laser surgery may be recommended to maintain your current vision and prevent any further loss of vision. Multiple laser treatments over time are sometimes necessary to treat diabetic retinopathy. Laser surgery does not cure diabetic retinopathy and doesn't always prevent further loss of vision. You may continue to lose vision.
Early detection of diabetic retinopathy is the best way to protect against vision loss. People with diabetes should schedule an eye exam once a year. Maintaining strict control of blood sugar can significantly lower the risk of vision loss.
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Age related macular degeneration (AMD) is damage to the macula, the part of the retina responsible for central vision. AMD is the leading cause of severe vision loss in people over 65. It affects both near and far vision and makes many activities that use your central vision such as reading and driving very difficult and, in severe cases, impossible. This disease does not result in total blindness, and there is still use of some peripheral vision.
Macular degeneration is a part of the natural aging process of the eye. Why it develops is unknown and no treatment has been uniformly effective.
The two most common types of macular degeneration are "dry" and "wet". Most people have the dry type, and vision loss is usually gradual. The wet form of AMD is less common and is the result of abnormal blood vessels forming under the retina in the back of the eye. These blood vessels leak fluid or blood causing central vision to become blurry. Vision loss with this form is usually more rapid and severe.
Typical signs of the disease are dark or empty areas in the center vision and straight lines becoming distorted.
Macular degeneration can be detected in its early stages during a medical eye exam.
While there is no cure yet for dry macular degeneration, the Age Related Eye Disease Study has shown that antioxidant vitamins and zinc may reduce the impact of AMD, in some people by about 25%. Vitamin supplements, as well as a healthy balanced diet, are recommended. Certain types of wet AMD can be treated with a laser to help slow or stop leaking blood vessels from damaging the macula. This procedure may help to preserve sight but is not a cure to restore vision to normal.
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