EYE CARE – Diabetic Retinopathy

WHAT IS DIABETIC RETINOPATHY?

Also known as diabetic eye disease, diabetic retinopathy is complication that affects eyes. It is basically the damage to the blood vessels of the light sensitive tissue at the back of the retina. In the beginning, diabetic retinopathy may cause no symptoms and only mild vision problems. However, in the later stages it can lead to blindness. This condition can develop to the patients suffering from type 1 or type 2 diabetes. Diabetic patients whose blood sugars level remain uncontrolled and have been diabetic from a long time are at risk of developing diabetic retinopathy.

What are the symptoms of diabetic retinopathy?

• Blurred vision
• Dark strings or spots in your vision, also known as floaters.
• Fluctuating vision.
• Vision loss.
• Empty or dark areas in your vision.
• Impaired color vision.

Stages of diabetic retinopathy?

Diabetic retinopathy most commonly affects both eyes. The disease has three stages based on which the treatment modalities can be discussed:

I. Non-proliferative diabetic retinopathy.
II. Macular edema.
III. Proliferative diabetic retinopathy.

At Rana Hospital, our meticulous approach to treat the patients with diabetic retinopathy includes proper diagnosis of the problem and accordingly designing treatment modality.

FFA (Fundus Fluorescein Angiography)

Fundus Fluorescein Angiography is a technique that is used for examination of circulation of choroid and retina using a specialized camera and fluorescent dye. The procedure involves injection of sodium fluorescein into the systemic circulation and afterwards obtaining an angiogram by photographing the fluorescence emitted after illumination of retina. This technique utilizes dye tracing method. This test helps the doctor to detect diabetic retinopathy as well as other ocular disorders. The transmit time, which is the time between injection of dye and its appearance in the blood vessels, helps the doctor to determine the rate of blood flow in the eye as well.

Intravitreal injections with Avastin can help to minimize:

• Macular oedema.
• New vessel growth in different conditions.

Intravitreal injections with Lucentis helps to treat age-related macular degeneration. This progressive disease, if left untreated, can result in loss of central vision. Lucentis blocks a molecule that is involved in the growth of new blood vessels as well as their leakage.

B-Scan

B-scan is a diagnostic test that offers the ophthalmologist/optometrist a two-dimensional cross sectional view of the eye as well as orbit. Also known as the “brightness scan” this scan is used to look inside the eye or the space behind the eye to measure the size and structures.

How B-scan is performed?

• You will be seated in the office of your ophthalmologist and you will be asked to look in different directions. The test is mostly done with eyes in closed position.

• A gel is placed on the skin of your eyelids after which B-scan probe is gently placed against your eyelids to perform the test.

How does it feel to the patient while undergoing B-scan?

As your eyes will be numbed before the procedure, you will not have any discomfort. Your ophthalmologist will ask you to look into different directions to improve the image obtained on the ultrasound and view different areas of your eyes.

Are there any risks associated with getting a B-scan done?

The patients are instructed to avoid scratching the cornea and not to rub the numbed eye until the anesthesia wears off (approximately 15 minutes). There are no risks.