DR, or diabetic retinopathy, is one of the leading causes of blindness in adults, affecting many people with diabetes. The only way to correctly diagnose it is through a comprehensive eye exam, and in fact many people have found they have diabetes in this manner. 
 

A dialated eye exam to enlarge your pupils allows your opthamologist to look in your eyes for any signs of diabetic retinopathy.
 

How Can You Manage DR?

Managing DR is critical to stopping or slowing its damaging impact on your sight. Here are some steps to manage the condition and preserve your sight. 

• Take your medication and use your insulin as instructed

• Improve how your body metabolizes sugar and keep it low through regular exercise

• Go on a diabetic-friendly diet to help manage your sugar levels

• Have regular tests for hemoglobin A1c and know your readings

• Test your blood sugar regularly

• Test for ketone levels in your urine if your doctor advises

• Regular medical checkups to check your control methods and ensure other risk factors like high blood pressure and high cholesteral are not developing.

What Are the Various Treatments for DR?

Treatment options for DR depend on your DR type and how advanced the condition is. The treatment can slow the disease or stop it entirely, preventing vision loss.

Early DR

If you have the mild or moderate form of the condition—usually nonproliferative—you may not need immediate treatment. The doctor will work with you to monitor the progress of the disease to determine when you may require treatment. Managing your sugar levels will slow the progression of the condition significantly.

Advanced DR

When your DR is advanced and has caused specific eye conditions, you have several treatment options. 

Eye Injections

The medications the eye doctor injects into your eye can stop the development of abnormal blood vessels in the eye. They also help minimize intraocular fluid buildup, preventing any associated problems. These medications fall under the same clinical name—vascular endothelial growth factor inhibitors.

They are usually injected after topical anesthesia; note that they may cause a brief discomfort. They may cause some redness, spots in vision or scratchiness but will subside within a day.
 

Laser Photocoagulation

This laser treatment happens on an outpatient basis in your eye doctor’s clinic to treat macula edema or proliferative retinopathy. The lasers burn the abnormal blood vessels that form on the retina to slow or stop fluid leakage into the eye. The treatment may not return your vision to normal, but it prevents the condition from worsening. 

Vitrectomy

This surgery requires an outpatient surgery and may be performed under general or local anesthesia. The doctor removes blood from the eye fluid through a tiny incision and may also remove scar tissue from the retina. 

For more on diabetic retinopathy, call Eastside Eye Physicians at our offices in Michigan. Shelby Township (586) 247-2020 or St. Clair Shores (586) 774-2020.