Naas van der Spuy

OPTOMETRIST

PRACTICE NR: 7026870

021 863 0101

Diabetes and the eyes.

The general recommendation for the eyes and vision is to have a full eye test every 2 years. Diabetics, on the other hand, should have yearly check-ups because they fall into a higher risk group to have ocular changes due to their condition.

 

Main points:

  • The only definitive rule is that the longer you have diabetes, the higher the possibility of negative changes to the eyes and vision.
  • IT CAN BE TREATED, but not necessarily at the first sign thereof. Diabetes is a slow insidious disease. Only with regular checks can the proper time be determined for possible laser treatment to keep the retinopathy in check. (Retinopathy is the diseased condition of the nerve layers (retina) with which you see, on the inside of the eye.
  • Long term diabetes may cause the blood vessels in the eye to perish, like an old hosepipe. Then it will start leaking and cause wet spots in and swelling of the retinal tissue. At the start, the dense structure of the retina contains the leakages, but if it gets out of hand your vision may be permanently damaged. Before this threshold is reached, laser treatment may be done to “weld shut “ the leaking blood vessels.
  • Cataracts (frequently in the diabetic eye). This compares to a dirty window, inside the eye, behind the pupil. You will never be able to see through a dirty window, no matter how expensive your glasses are. The window(s) must be cleaned. Your eye’s own dirty lens can be replaced by a clean artificial one, hence named a lens replacement or cataract operation.
  • Most diabetics have an awful fear of eventual blindness. By all means, worry, but worry less. Drastic eye/visual damage can be prevented by good long term diabetic control and regular eye exams.