Severe Eye Conditions
When patients have diabetes, there are reoccurring complications. One of these is diabetic retinopathy. This condition affects the patient's eyes and can cause vision problems. When it begins, patients may notice no symptoms or experience mild issues. However, as it progresses, it can eventually cause blindness.
If a patient has either type of diabetes, this condition can start to develop. Patients are more likely to develop this condition if they have had diabetes for a long time. Also, if their blood sugar isn't well-controlled, it's more likely for diabetic retinopathy to develop. Call us at Eye Care for Diabetics Medical Group Inc. in Inglewood, CA, to make an appointment with our ophthalmologist.
Symptoms of Diabetic Retinopathy
During the earliest stages, you may not notice any vision changes. However, this condition will worsen over time, and symptoms will start to show up. These can include blurry vision, seeing floaters that look like dark strings or spots, having vision that fluctuates, having empty or dark areas in your visual field, and losing sight.
When you have diabetes, carefully managing your condition is the best way to keep as much of your vision as possible. Even if you don't see any problems with your vision, you need to see the ophthalmologist every year to check for problems. If you develop diabetes during or before pregnancy, it will decrease your risk of developing this complication. If you are pregnant, you may need to have more eye exams during the pregnancy. See your eye doctor if your vision suddenly gets spotty, blurred, or hazy.
Causes of Diabetic Retinopathy
The retina at the back of your eye has several blood vessels. When those vessels get damaged, it causes this condition. For example, if your blood has a high sugar level, this can block the blood vessels that feed your retinas, which means no blood supply to the retinas. When this happens, your eyes will try to grow new vessels to feed the retinas. However, the new vessels aren't well-developed, and they easily leak.
Who Gets Diabetic Retinopathy
This condition can develop in anyone with diabetes. However, you are more likely to have diabetic retinopathy if you have had diabetes for many years, don't have reasonable blood sugar control, have high cholesterol, blood pressure, and use tobacco. It is also more common in Native American, Hispanic, and Black people.
See Our Ophthalmologist
If you have diabetes, visit your ophthalmologist annually, depending on your condition. Then, call our Inglewood office for an appointment at (310) 671-0909. We can help you return to everyday life with a refreshing outlook on life.
