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1. What are the initial symptoms that patients should look out for with regard to visual health?

Early leekages and bleeding in the retina are often asymptomatic. Damage would have been done the time the patient notices a blurring of vision.

2. What is a typical diabetic consultation at your clinic like?

An ophthalmologist can dilate the pupil and examine the retina to see if there are any early leekages or bleeding and recommend early treatment with laser if necessary. In late stages, surgery may be needed, but by this time, most patients will suffer some degree of permanent visual loss despite surgery. Early detection and treatment is therefore the key to maintaining good vision. Laser treatment is effective in preventing further detrioration of vision in most patients. Despite treatment, some patients’ condition do deteriorate and may require surgery to stabilise vision.

Other visual function tests will also be performed in the doctor’s clinic. Diabetic patients also run an increased risk of developing other eye complications, like earlier onset of cataracts and glaucoma.

3. Tell us how we can prevent diabetic retinopathy

Good control of diabetes is important to prevent complications of the eye. Diabetes has detrimental effects on th eye, which worsens with increasing duration and a later time of onset. After twenty years of diabetes, 99% of those with young onset diabetics will develop diabetic retinopathy, while another 60% of the older onset diabetics will develop retinopathy after the same period.

It is also important to control other co-existing diseases, like hypertension. Cessation of smoking is also important.

4. Why do diabetics often end up with diabetic retinopathy?

Diabetes is an ongoing disease that affects the small blood vessels in the whole body. There are many fine capillaries in the eye and early changes in these blood vessels can be seen by the doctor. These early changes are also more readily noticed by the patient themselvesas their vision becomes affected. The same changes occur in other organs of the body but by the time the function of these organs is affected, the changes would have been at an advanced stage.

5. Is there a risk of permanent blindness?

Untreated, 3.6% of young onset diabetics and 1.6%of older onset diabetics become legally blind after 20 years.

Source: Healthy Times Digest Series, 40s & Beyond Guide, Vol. 01

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