What is Diabetic Retinopathy?

Definition of Diabetic Retinopathy:

Diabetic eye problems are caused by damage to the retina due to the inability to control blood sugar and cholesterol and high blood pressure, which affects the arteries, especially the arteries that feed. Eyes. Eye damage in diabetics is divided into two major stages and is characterized by levels:

1. The mild vascular disease called NPDR

(Non- Proliferative Diabetic Retinopathy): requires immediate treatment to prevent blindness

NPDR: is the first sign of the onset of the Diabetic Retinopathy disease called Mild NPDR. At this stage, tiny blood vessels in the cornea rupture or leak blood and lipid. This leak causes the retina to swell and cause white lipid in the lining of the eye called exudates.

At this stage, the patient's vision remains good, except for a touch or swelling of the Macular area (the imaging site begins to swell), causing the patient to become dizzy, which is the main point of the optic nerve called Moderate NPDR.

Severe NPDR is a fast-growing phase. Lack of oxygen in the retina causes abnormalities in the arteries and causes white spots and many abnormal blood vessels in the retina.

2. Severe atherosclerosis, called PDR

(Proliferative Diabetic Retinopathy): which can lead to blindness due to the occurrence of new blood vessels, which can easily bleed due to new blood vessels. This grows imperfect.

Possible Causes of Diabetic Retinopathy

Eye problems in diabetics are caused by a number of factors, including:

• Blood sugar factor
• Blood fat factor
• High blood pressure
• Other eye diseases such as Cataract, Glaucoma…

Patients who do not manage these factors well, the complications of the eye will appear 4 to 5 years after diabetes. Studies have shown that 18 to 20 out of 100 diabetics develop eye complications.

Symptoms of Diabetic Retinopathy

At Mild NPDR and Moderate NPDR, the patient did not show any noticeable symptoms. Patients will begin to notice abnormal symptoms when they reach the stage of Severe NPDR (Non-Proliferative Diabetic Retinopathy), such as:

• Dizziness
• See crooked images
• Difficult to watch at night
• See the black dot in the center of the image
• There may be blood in the eyes.

Diagnosis

Eye problems in diabetics can be diagnosed through:

• Refraction, IOP, VA
• Slit-lamp
• Visual Field test
• Dilate pupil
• Fundus photography under the eye to see if there are any broken veins.
• OCT (Optical coherence tomography) scan of the bottom of the eye to see if the bottom of the eye is swollen or narrowed.

Prevention of Diabetic Retinopath

To prevent diabetes, all three factors need to be monitored regularly.
Ophthalmology is important in diagnosing whether or not a person with diabetes has Diabetic Retinopathy.
Pregnant women with diabetes should see an eye doctor during the first three months of pregnancy because it can cause Diabetic Retinopathy very quickly.
Consult a doctor who specializes in diabetes to stabilize blood sugar.
Prevent HbA1c
Control blood lipid levels
Maintain good blood pressure.

Note: People with diabetes need regular eye exams.

Treatment of Diabetic Retinopathy

All diabetics should have regular eye examinations at least once a year.
For those who are found to have eye complications, Mild NPDR and Moderate NPDR should be checked more often, every 3 to 6 months.
Exercise, change your diet

People with Severe NPDR should be treated with:
First, radiation is used to prevent the development of eye problems because the tiny blood vessels in the eye are constricted, so radiation is needed around the arteries to feed the macular tissue. The number of x-rays varies depending on the doctor's diagnosis In case of swelling or growth of new blood vessels, in addition to radiation, anti-VEGF (Avastin) is used to stop the growth of new blood vessels that are not good. If there is blood in the bottom of the eye, surgery to remove the blood and radiation with Vitrectomy.