Diabetes – a disease characterized by elevated blood sugar levels – is one of the most common causes of blindness in Poland. Due to the risk it poses to eyesight, patients should undergo ophthalmological examinations at least once a year.
Thursday is the World Diabetes Day. It is estimated that up to 2 million Poles suffer from it. More than half, however, are unaware that they are ill and are at risk of serious complications.
During the Thursday press conference, the ophthalmologist from the Independent Public Clinical Hospital No. 5 of the Medical University of Silesia in Katowice, Assoc. Dorota Wyyszneowska – Promieńska.
“Diabetes is one of the most common causes of blindness in our society. People are living longer and longer, so the disease takes longer and longer to develop in various organs of the body and affects the eyes as well, ”she said.
She explained that the first changes in the eye caused by diabetes concern the retina. “The problem of diabetic disorders is the abnormalities of the structure of the tiny vessels, which begin to become less flexible, their walls become thicker and more permeable, which causes more fluid to enter the surrounding tissues, i.e. the retina. It leads to microhaemorrhages, closure of areas of normal retinal circulation, which causes damage to the retina ”- she said.
If this process is advanced, macular edema, the place most responsible for our vision, and vitreous disturbances can occur. This creates membranes that pull the retina and can lead to its detachment. Diabetes can also contribute to the development of cataracts or glaucoma.
That is why – as the ophthalmologist emphasized – it is worth doing blood sugar tests in order to treat diabetes as soon as possible. If we already know that we suffer from it, it is necessary to have an ophthalmological examination at least once a year. If the changes are more advanced, check-ups should be more frequent, even every three months.
“It often happens that patients come with a decrease in visual acuity, not being aware that they have diabetes, and we are the first to find disorders on this background. We then tell the patient to get tested because he has the features of retinopathy, ie retinal disorders related to sugar level disorders “- said Assoc. Wyźdzowska – Promieńska.
If the changes in the eye of a diabetic patient are not advanced, follow-up visits to an ophthalmologist and observation are sufficient. In the case of more advanced lesions, ophthalmologists use laser or surgical treatment. (PAP)