Diabetic? Keep an eye on eye diseases

HYDERABAD: Patients with diabetes should have regular screening of the eyes because of the myriad of problems that range from blurring of vision to blindness. We discuss below the various manifestations of diabetes on the eye.

Blurred vision: The lens in the eye helps us focus on objects, this is very similar to what happens in a camera.In people with very high blood sugar the lens could swell and can affect the ability to see.

Treatment: To correct this one needs to get the blood sugars back in to the target range (70-130 milligrams per decilitre, or mg/dL, before meals, and less than 180 mg/dL 1 to 2 hours after a meal). It might be three months before the vision returns to normal.

Cataracts: Common symptoms include blurring and glare during the early stages and in the later stage inability to see.

Treatment: Surgery to remove the cloudy lens and replace it with an artificial one.

Diabetic Retinopathy: If not identified



and treated earlier, leads to irreversible blindness.

Treatment: Tight control of blood sugars requiring treatment with multiple daily insulin injection or delivery of insulin via an insulin pump will help stop any further deterioration.

Glaucoma: Symptoms include headache, pain behind the eyes, watering, halos around lights, holes in the vision and vision loss.

Treatment:A full eye check up on a yearly basis is necessary for all diabetic patients to identify these problems early and enable appropriate treatment.

If diabetic women are planning to get pregnant it is important that their blood sugar control is optimal and should have a full examination of their eyes before they conceive.

Pregnant diabetic women are at higher risk for development of eye complications of previously existing eye problems during the course of pregnancy and should therefore have their eyes checked every three months.