5 Things You Should Know About Diabetic Eye Disease

Did you know that diabetes can cause eyedisease? If left untreated, it can cause vision lossor even blindness. To help you keep your visionhealthy, here are five things the National EyeInstitute (NEI) would like you to know about diabeticeye disease:

  1. A group of eye problems—People with diabetes may face several eyeproblems as a complication of this disease.They include cataract, glaucoma, and diabeticretinopathy, which is the leading cause of blindnessin American adults age 20–74.
  2. No symptoms, no pain—In its early stages, diabetic retinopathy has no symptoms. A person may not notice vision changes until the disease advances. Blurred vision may occur when the macula swells from the leaking fluid (called macular edema). If new vessels have grown on the surface of the retina, they can bleed into the eye, blocking vision.
  3. Have diabetes? You are at risk—Anyone with diabetes is at risk of getting diabetic retinopathy. The longer someone has diabetes, the more likely he or she will get this eye disease. In fact, between 40 and 45 percent of those with diagnosed diabetes have some degree of diabetic retinopathy.
  4. Stay on TRACK—That is: Take your medications as prescribed by your doctor; Reach and maintain a healthy weight; Add more physical activity to your daily routine; Control your ABC’s—A1C, blood pressure, and cholesterol levels; and Kick the smoking habit.
  5. Get a dilated eye exam—If you have diabetes, be sure to have a comprehensive dilated eye exam at least once ayear. Diabetic eye disease can be detected early and treated before noticeable vision loss occurs.

For more information about eye health, caring for your vision, tips for finding an eye care professional, or a list of organizations that can help provide financial assistance for eye care, visit the National Eye Institute (NEI) Healthy Eyes Website. NEI is one of the National Institutes of Health and is the federal government’s lead agency for vision research that leads to sight-saving treatments.