American Diabetes Association - www.diabetes.org

National Diabetes Information Clearinghouse - www.diabetes.niddk.nih.gov

Prevent Blindness America - www.preventblindness.org

You can improve your outcome by keeping good control of your blood sugar and blood pressure.

Both treatments are effective at reducing vision loss. They do not cure diabetic retinopathy or reverse the changes that have already occurred.

Once proliferative retinopathy occurs, there is always a risk for bleeding. You will need ongoing monitoring, and you may need more treatment.

• Blindness
• Glaucoma
• Retinal detachment

Call for an appointment with an eye doctor (ophthalmologist) if you have diabetes and you have not seen an ophthalmologist in the past year.

Call your doctor if any of the following symptoms are new or are becoming worse:

• You cannot see well in dim light.
• You have blind spots.
• You have double vision (you see two things when there is only one).
• Your vision is hazy or blurry and you cannot focus.
• You have pain in one of your eyes.
• You are having headaches.
• You see spots floating in your eyes.
• You cannot see things on the side of your field of vision.
• You see shadows.

Images

Diabetes - retinal conditions

Diabetic retinopathy

Slit-lamp exam

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Review Date: 04/27/2010
Reviewed By: Daniel E. Bustos, MD, MS, Private Practice specializing in Comprehensive Ophthalmology in Eugene, OR. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, A.D.A.M., Inc.

A.D.A.M., Inc. is accredited by URAC, also known as the American Accreditation HealthCare Commission (www.urac.org)