What Are Treatment Options for Diabetic Retinopathy

Diabetic retinopathy is a complication stemming from diabetes. It causes damage to blood vessels in the retina. At first, you may only have mild vision problems. But with time, the vision worsens and may lead to blindness. The longer you have diabetes, the more you need to take care of your blood sugar levels. Otherwise, you are likely to develop this eye complication.

High blood sugar levels can damage the blood vessels in your body, those in the eyes included. It causes them to swell and close, stopping blood circulation. When this happens, it initiates the growth of abnormal new blood vessels on the retina.

These vessels are weak, making them leak fluid into the eye. The fluid accumulates, causing changes in the shape and curve of the lens. These changes affect your vision.

Treatment

Once you start receiving treatment and controlling your blood sugar levels, the lens returns to its original shape. It also improves your vision. Treatment for diabetic retinopathy depends on several factors. The main one is the severity of your condition and how you respond to treatment.

Early Diabetic Retinopathy

In the early stages, the doctor may not interfere with the condition. Instead, they may choose to closely monitor your eyes until there is a need for treatment. Your eye doctor may also advise you to work with your diabetes doctor to take care of your blood sugar levels. Controlling your blood sugar can significantly slow down the development of the disease.

Advanced Diabetic Retinopathy

If you have macular edema or proliferative diabetic retinopathy, you will need immediate treatment. The treatment will depend on the problems with your retina. The options available are:

Injections

Some medicines can minimize the leakage from blood vessels and reduce the swelling in the eyes. They also stop the growth of new blood vessels. The doctor injects these vascular endothelial growth factor inhibitors into the vitreous of the eye. The injections involve the following steps:

Numbing the eye with medicine
Cleaning the eye to prevent infections
Using a small needle to administer the medication into the eye

You may require regular injections. However, the number of injections reduces over time.

Laser Treatment

The laser treatment takes place in the doctor’s office. You may need one or more laser sessions to see any effects. The doctor uses lasers to shrink blood vessels in the eye. The lasers also seal the leaks from the abnormal blood vessels. The treatment can either slow down or stop the leakage of blood. It also does the same to the buildup of fluid.

The doctor will numb the eye and aim a beam of light into the eye using a lens. The light may sting, but the treatment will slow down vision loss.

Surgery

If you have issues with your retina or vitreous, you may need surgery or a vitrectomy. The procedure involves the removal of some of the vitreous. The aim is to remove the blood or the cloudy vitreous from the eye. They also remove the scar tissue tugging on the retina.

The surgeon places a clear liquid or gas into the eye to replace the cloudy vitreous. The body absorbs the liquid or gas and creates new vitreous. To prevent infections, you will have to wear an eye patch.

For more information on the treatment options for diabetic retinopathy, visit Limestone Eye Care at our office in Lawrence, Kansas. You can call (785) 268-6880 today to schedule an appointment.