What is diabetic retinopathy?
Diabetes is a condition that can affect your whole body and is one of the leading causes of blindness. The retina takes the images we see and sends them through the optic nerve to the brain for analysis. It is maintained by a complex network of blood vessels that supply it with nutrients. In people with diabetes, these blood vessels can leak, causing damage to the retina.
Causes and risk?
There are several factors that can increase the risk of diabetic eye disease. The longer you have lived with diabetes, the higher your overall risk.
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Consistently elevated or poorly managed blood glucose levels can damage the blood vessels in the retina.
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High blood pressure places extra strain on delicate eye blood vessels, speeding up damage, while high cholesterol can contribute to vessel blockages and poor retinal blood flow.
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Pregnancy can trigger or accelerate diabetic retinopathy due to hormonal shifts and increased blood volume.
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Smoking can worsen blood pressure and lipid problems, raising the chances of vision loss.
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Pacific Islander populations also face a higher statistical risk.
What are the symptoms? How does it affect your vision?
Early symptoms can include weaker quality vision than you are used to. However, diabetic eye disease can present in different ways, and we would encourage you to get any unusual changes to your vision checked out.
It is not uncommon for people with diabetes to ignore early changes to their vision, meaning the condition can be left too late to be repairable.
Can it be treated or managed?
Treatment for diabetic eye disease would need to be carried out by an ophthalmologist. Lasers, injections, and surgery are all options to help manage the condition if required.
Identifying retinal changes early makes them more likely to be easier to manage and helps prevent lasting vision loss.
How is it detected or diagnosed?
In New Zealand, we are fortunate to have a health system that routinely screens for diabetic eye disease, and we would encourage anyone with diabetes to be part of this system.
An optometrist would suggest yearly monitoring if you have diabetes. During these appointments, we look for early changes to the retina that might not affect your vision or eyesight yet, but could do so in the future if they aren't identified.
