Diabetic Retinopathy

Diabetic Retinopathy (Eye Complications Due to Diabetes) – What Is It?

Diabetic Retinopathy (DR) refers to problems in the retina that occur in people with high blood sugar levels. If blood sugar remains elevated for a long time, the blood vessels in the eye can be damaged, abnormal vessels may form, and scar tissue can develop. All of these changes can harm the retina and impair vision. Diabetic retinopathy is one of the leading causes of blindness.

There are two main forms:

• Early Diabetic Retinopathy
• Advanced Diabetic Retinopathy

Symptoms of Diabetic Retinopathy

In the early stages, there may be no symptoms or they may be very mild. As the disease progresses, symptoms can include:

• Seeing floating spots or thread-like shapes
• Blurred vision
• Fluctuating vision
• Distorted color perception
• Dark and bright areas in vision
• Vision loss

Preventing diabetes or keeping it well-controlled is the best way to protect against retinopathy. For diabetic patients, regular eye exams, blood sugar control, and maintaining healthy blood pressure are crucial for prevention.

Tests for Diabetic Retinopathy

• Comprehensive Eye Exam: Includes dilation of the pupils to examine the retina. Additional tests may be used to support diagnosis if necessary.
• Fluorescein Angiography: Provides information about the structure and function of retinal blood vessels. A contrast dye is injected into a vein in the arm, and images of the dye passing through retinal vessels are captured.
• Indocyanine Green Angiography: Uses a special dye and camera to visualize blood circulation in the choroid, the layer beneath the retina.
• Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT): Imaging method showing cross-sections of the retina; important for detecting retinal swelling (edema).
• Ultrasound Imaging: Safe method using high-frequency sound waves to evaluate the posterior structures of the eye.

Diabetic Retinopathy Treatment Izmir

• Focal Laser Treatment: Also called photocoagulation, this method aims to stop leakage from damaged blood vessels.
• Scatter Laser Treatment: Also called panretinal photocoagulation, this technique destroys damaged retinal tissue to prevent the formation of new abnormal vessels, scar tissue, and vision loss. Laser treatments are most effective in patients with less advanced disease and are performed as outpatient procedures without general anesthesia.
• Pharmacological Treatments: In certain stages of the disease, medications are injected directly into the eye.
• Vitrectomy: Used in very severe cases. Small incisions are made to enter the eye and remove hemorrhages, abnormal vessels, and scar tissue, followed by laser and medication treatments inside the eye.