Diabetes not only affects the lifestyle of suffering people, it also puts the patient on higher risk of blindness. If blood sugar remains consistently high, over time it can affect all organs of the body, the eye is no exception. Diabetes can increase the risk for several eye diseases in the individual: eye cataracts, glaucoma and diabetic retinopathy.
Both type 1 and type 2 diabetes can cause major problems for the eyes by increasing the risk and severity of eye diseases, with diabetic retinopathy being the most common. The retina is the light sensitive part of the eye, and its innermost layer. The image of what you see is formed on the retina, and transmitted to the brain by the nerve of the eye, called the optic nerve. In Diabetic Retinopathy, the blood vessels in the retina of the eye may become fragile and leak blood and other proteins.
In later stages, abnormal new blood vessels grow on the surface of the retina. If the fluid leaks into the centre of eye it can lead to macular edema, which is the swelling of the macular area of the retina that is responsible for sharp central vision. Due to which one may have blurry vision. Most people with non proliferative retinopathy have no symptoms.
Diabetic retinopathy has four stages:
1. Mild Non-proliferative Retinopathy. This is characterised by weakening of the blood vessels, which develop small areas of balloon-like swelling in the retina’s tiny blood vessels called microaneurysms.
2. Moderate Non-proliferative Retinopathy. As the disease progresses, some blood vessels that nourish the retina get blocked resulting in blood vessels leaking protein into the retina.
3. Severe Non-proliferative Retinopathy. Many more blood vessels are blocked, depriving the retina of blood and oxygen. These areas of the retina send signals to the body to grow new blood vessels.
4. Proliferative Retinopathy. New blood vessels form in the retina, and these are abnormal and fragile. They grow on the surface the retina and along the surface of the vitreous gel. These abnormal vessels may leak blood, resulting in severe vision loss and even blindness.
Diabetes can affect eyes in a number of ways. The unusual changes in blood sugar levels resulting from diabetes can affect the lens inside the eye, especially when diabetes is uncontrolled. This can result in blurring of vision which comes and goes over the day, depending on your blood sugar levels. Control of blood sugar can stabilise the vision.
Prolonged deranged blood sugars can lead to a clouding of the lens of the eye, this is called a cataract. Cataract is a result of ageing, but the process becomes faster in diabetics.
Diabetes also increases the risk of glaucoma in a patient (see glaucoma).
The major problem with diabetic eye diseases is that they remain undiagnosed until the late stages, since they are asymptomatic at onset.
Therefore it’s important for those with diabetes to get a comprehensive dilated eye exam at least once a year. Those already diagnosed with diabetic retinopathy may need more frequent eye exams.
The following measures reduce the risk of developing diabetic eye conditions and decrease chances of progression of disease:
• Control blood sugar levels
• Control blood pressure
• Keep your cholesterol levels in check
• Be fit, maintain a healthy lifestyle and weight and give up smoking
• Be regular with medications and doctors appointments
There are a variety of medical and surgical options for glaucoma and diabetic retinopathy, while cataract is primarily a surgical disease. With early detection, proper treatment can be administered by an eye care professional to help control the effects of diabetic eye diseases and prevent blindness.