Sure, you worry about diabetes all day and all night, but nothing scares you more than losing your vision quietly. You probably have your blood sugar checked more times than you can count.
Are the microscopic changes happening inside your eyes right now? Are you losing the ability to drive, read, or do anything you enjoy?
Diabetic retinopathy progresses silently and can rob you of your sight without a hint. Luckily, there are things you can do before it’s too late. Keep reading to learn about the four stages of diabetic eye disease, how to identify silent signs, and cutting-edge treatments for preventing vision loss.
What Is Diabetic Retinopathy?
But first, before we discuss how the disease advances, we need to know exactly what this thing does to your eyes! Here’s how having a high blood sugar level hurts your retinas:
Diabetic retinopathy is a condition in which the blood vessels in the back of the eye – the ones feeding the light-sensitive cells that form your retina – are damaged by the high blood sugar that diabetes causes. Those vessels may swell, leak, or become blocked entirely.
If they become blocked, they deprive your retina of the oxygen and nutrients it needs to survive. Without treatment, this can lead to severe, irreversible vision loss.
What Are The Stages Of Diabetic Retinopathy?
Since this condition is so gradual, worsening over several years, doctors have divided its progression into four stages, making it easier to understand what is going on in your eyes.
There are four stages of this progressive eye disease, which doctors have organized into two broad categories: nonproliferative and proliferative. Nonproliferative is the first stage, and proliferative is the advanced stage.
Stage 1: Mild Nonproliferative Diabetic Retinopathy
In the earliest stage, your retinal blood vessels form small bumps, which your doctor refers to as microaneurysms. These are balloon-like formations that may leak small amounts of fluid into your retina.
There are no symptoms or vision changes in this early stage. We suggest that you check out our informative article on diabetic retinopathy to learn how to care for the changes you are experiencing at this early stage.
Stage 2: Moderate Nonproliferative Diabetic Retinopathy
As your condition gets worse, you’ll develop more blood vessel growth and distortion. These unhealthy vessels can become blocked, preventing blood from reaching certain areas of your retina. Deprived of this nourishment, your retinal cells may begin to die. If you haven’t noticed any symptoms already, you might not notice any now unless fluid leaks into the center of your vision.
Stage 3: Severe Nonproliferative Diabetic Retinopathy
By stage 3, your blood vessels get blocked up everywhere! You end up with huge chunks of your retina that don’t get any blood at all. In response, the body recognizes the problem of insufficient blood/oxygen. It sends chemical signals throughout your body, prompting the growth of new blood vessels.
Stage 4: Proliferative Diabetic Retinopathy (PDR)
At this point, the condition has entered its final and most dangerous phase. These pain signals prompt the formation of new, aberrant blood vessels throughout your eye and across your retina. The abnormal blood vessels are incredibly delicate. When they leak, they can cause floaters (dark spots) or even total blindness.
Furthermore, scars develop with these vessels, pulling the retina away from the back of the eye. When this separation happens, it is called a retinal detachment, and it can cause irreversible blindness.
How Does Diabetic Retinopathy Affect Vision?
Knowing the stages is just one piece of the puzzle. You also need to understand how the inner workings of your body are literally changing the way you see every day.
In the beginning, you may not have much sight loss. But as the disease advances, you may find yourself with dramatic loss of vision, potentially manifesting in the following ways:
- Floaters: It could be dark blobs or strings floating in your vision, or cobwebs, all due to bleeding from an unusual blood vessel.
- Blurry or Wavy Vision: When you get fluid in the middle part of your retina (your macula), you’re getting what is called diabetic macular edema. This can make reading and driving difficult and make it hard to see small details.
- Dark or Empty Areas: A blockage in your blood vessels may starve portions of your retina, causing gaps in your peripheral and central vision.
- Fluctuating Vision: And sometimes, your vision may fluctuate daily due to blood sugar levels, and the eye itself could begin to swell.
When To See A Specialist Right Away?
Most vision problems creep up on us slowly. Some of them, however, signify immediate, serious problems. Here’s why recognizing these signs of an eye emergency is so important: You could lose your vision.
If your vision changes suddenly, head to the emergency room or a retina specialist. The warning signs are clear: A sudden flood of new floaters, a dark curtain obscuring your vision, or a rapid, severe loss of vision all suggest an immediate retinal detachment or a serious bleed. The only hope to preserve your vision in either case is surgery.
How Specialists Diagnose And Track Progression?
Your eye must be evaluated carefully if you’ve noticed any changes. Detailed diagnostic exams are used to detect any early eye disease or damage to the back of the eye.
A retina specialist makes the diagnosis and provides follow-up for diabetic retinopathy, including a thorough dilated eye examination. Your retina specialist will instill eye drops that dilate your pupils so they can inspect the blood vessels of the back of your eye.
They will use a combination of innovative imaging technologies to inspect your retina:
- Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT): It’s a safe, painless imaging technology that allows us to capture clear cross-sections of your retina. The technology measures the thickness of your retina and identifies microscopic fluid buildup.
- Fluorescein Angiography: The dye is injected into your arm by a technician or physician. A camera then takes pictures of the dye as it travels through your retina’s blood vessels to check for leaks or blockages.
Treatment Options At Every Stage
It is quite intimidating to hear that you’ve been diagnosed, but today, there are effective ways to treat your condition. Let’s explore your modern treatment options.
Your treatment is tailored according to the stage of your disease. For early nonproliferative types of retinopathy, regular monitoring with intensive management of blood glucose, blood pressure, and cholesterol can be sufficient.
For late-stage nonproliferative or any proliferative stages, these cutting-edge treatment options are offered by your specialists:
- Anti-VEGF Injections: Doctors inject medications like Eylea or Vabysmo into your eye. These drugs block the protein that triggers abnormal blood vessel growth, reducing swelling and leaking.
- Laser Photocoagulation: Your doctor uses a precise laser to seal leaking blood vessels or shrink abnormal vessels across your retina.
- Corticosteroid Implants: These tiny, slowly dissolving implants release medication to reduce retinal inflammation over several months.
- Vitrectomy: A surgeon removes the blood-filled gel from the center of your eye to restore your vision and relieve tension on your retina
Protect Your Sight With Early Detection
Choosing to prioritize your health right now is the best thing you can do for your future. Here’s what we can do to make sure you maintain your visual independence.
Your eyes are a priceless asset; don’t leave them to chance! Retina Vitreous Associates of Florida has a world-renowned team and cutting-edge technology to detect problems at their earliest stages. From start to finish, we are here to protect your vision.
Don’t let diabetes control your future and rob you of your freedom!
Schedule a complete dilated eye exam with our elite retina specialists today! Click the button to reserve your appointment and preserve your vision for years to come.
Retina Vitreous Associates of Florida. For lifetime vision. World-class retina care.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
1. Can You Reverse Diabetic Retinopathy?
You can’t undo permanent damage to the blood vessels in your eyes. But getting treatment early, maintaining healthy blood sugar levels, and living a healthy lifestyle can slow or prevent further damage.
2. How Fast Does Diabetic Retinopathy Progress?
You’re likely not to notice any problems for years. High blood sugar, hypertension, and pregnancy can all make it worse very fast, with no warning.
3. Can You Have Diabetic Retinopathy Without Symptoms?
Yep, that means you can get the earliest stage of diabetic retinopathy and feel nothing. Those micro-vessels will ooze, so keep getting that yearly dilated eye exam to save your vision.