Diabetic retinopathy is a condition of the eye that targets the retina in patients who have diabetes mellitus. Seventy five percent of patients who have had diabetes mellitus for fifteen years will develop some type of diabetic retinopathy. The retina is like the film in a camera, it processes the light rays that sends this information through the optic nerve to the brain.

There are two main types of this condition. One is known as background and the other is known as proliferative retinopathy. The background retinopathy, which is a milder form, typically progresses over years and may cause some visual problems. Sometimes it may progress into the more advanced form known as progressive diabetic retinopathy. The cause of the diabetic retinopathy is not known although it seems to be related to the length of time you have had diabetes and occurs more frequently in patients who are insulin dependent. Because there are no early warning signs it is important to have annual eye examinations if you are diabetic.

The earliest changes in diabetic retinopathy are abnormalities in the blood vessel walls that cause out pockets, known as microaneurysms. These ballooned out areas may leak out protein, fat, fluid or blood. These leaking blood vessels may or may not effect vision. If they are located on or near the macula where all the fine vision is located then it is known as diabetic macula edema and can cause a significant reduction of vision. In proliferative retinopathy abnormal new blood vessels may grow or proliferate over the retinal surface and optic nerve. These new blood vessels, however, are very fragile and tend to break easily and hemorrhage. The hemorrhaging can cause all kinds of problems and reduction in vision. These new blood vessels may shut down and scar. The scaring may cause pulling of the retina leading to a retinal detachment.

The symptoms of diabetic retinopathy depend upon the stages. In the early stages there may not be any symptoms. If the leaky blood vessels affect the retina associated with the fine vision, located in what is known as the macula, then there will be blurring of vision. Of course hemorrhaging into the eye can cause blurring of vision of different degrees. Retinal detachments will cause loss of vision as well. Treatment is early intervention to catch diabetic retinopathy in its early stages. At some point patients will require laser intervention to seal off leaky blood vessels. If there are additional blood vessels forming then additional laser will be done to cause these new blood vessels to regress. If there is hemorrhaging into the center of the eye then a surgical procedure known as a vitrectomy can be performed.

Diabetic retinopathy is one of the leading causes of poor vision and blindness in the United States. Although diabetic retinopathy cannot be prevented, early diagnosis and treatment can reduce the severity of the disease process. If you are diabetic then a thorough eye examination on a yearly basis is crucial to maintain the health of your eye.