By David J. Weis, O.D

Information From Your Eye Doctor

Approximately 16 million Americans have diabetes. Diabetes can affect your eyes. In fact, five million may lose their vision because they didn't know they had the disease. Each year, 12,000 to 24,000 people lose their sight because of diabetes.

Diabetic eye disease, eye problems that affect those with diabetes, include diabetic retinopathy, cataracts and glaucoma. The most common of these is diabetic retinopathy, the leading cause of new cases of blindness among working age people in the United States. People with diabetes are more likely to get cataracts at a younger age and are twice as likely to develop glaucoma.

What is diabetic retinopathy?

Diabetic retinopathy is a potentially vision-threatening condition in which the blood vessels inside the retina (the area of light-sensitive cells that line the back of the eye) become damaged. These damaged vessels can then leak, bleed or scar and cause retinal detachment, hemorrhaging or macular edema, conditions that can damage vision. The longer you have diabetes, the greater your chance of developing diabetic retinopathy. More than one-third of those diagnosed with diabetes don't get the recommended vision care.

Recommended Care

If you are diagnosed with diabetes, schedule a complete dilated eye examination with your eye doctor at least once a year. During a "dilated" exam, your doctor uses eye drops to widen your pupil, making it easier to examine your retina. Your eye doctor will recommend more frequent examinations if problems are detected.

Women with diabetes should also be examined if they are planning to become pregnant, are early in the first trimester, as well as every one to three months during pregnancy because diabetic retinopathy can worsen much more rapidly during pregnancy.

Recent studies show that controlling diabetes by self-monitoring blood sugar levels and multiple daily insulin injections or using an insulin pump can slow the development of diabetic retinopathy and other complications of diabetes. As always, early diagnosis of diabetes and effectively controlling blood sugar levels and high blood pressure through diet, exercise and proper medication can help control eye diseases associated with diabetes.

Symptoms

There are often no symptoms in the early stages of diabetic retinopathy, and your vision may not be affected until the disease worsens.

You also should see your eye doctor immediately if you experience:

• Blurred vision that lasts more than

a few days.

• Blurred vision that is not associat-

ed with a change in blood sugar.

• Floaters

Treatment

An effective partnership between you, your primary care physician and your eye doctor is necessary to make sure proper eye care and treatment is provided.

The current main treatment option for diabetic retinopathy is laser photocoagulation. In this treatment, the "focal" laser helps to close leaking blood vessels, which lead to macular edema. The eye doctor uses a special "pan retinal" laser to make tiny burns on the retina surface removing damaged retinal tissue. This helps to stop or prevent growth of abnormal blood vessels that cause bleeding and retinal detachment. When performed promptly, laser photocoagulation can significantly reduce the risk of severe vision loss.

Where Can I Get More Information?

Your eye doctor is the best source of information on diabetic eye disease, as well as eye health and safety.

David J. Weis, O.D. is a comprehensive eye care specialist at Milwaukee Eye Care Associates, Dr. Peter S. Foote is the medical director. To schedule an appointment with Dr. Weis, please contact Milwaukee Eye Care Associates at 414-271-2020.