Instituto De La Visión Dr. Méndez
Versión en Español
Diabetic Retinopathy
There are 150 million diabetics worldwide, 15 million in the United States, half of them don't know they suffer from diabetes and are not having any treatment.
Diabetic retinopathy is the main cause for blindness in México; it is the main cause for blindness in the working population. This disease has a direct relation with diabetes chronological evolution. Hyperglycemia plays an important role in the development of the disease.
When a person knows he or she suffers from diabetes it is very important for this person to undergo an ophthalmologic evaluation to detect if he or she is suffering from diabetic retinopathy.
Back of a normal eye
Neovascularization of the optic disc, pan retinal photocoagulation must take place immediately
Proliferative diabetic retinopathy and subhyaloidal hemorrhage caused by neovascularization of the retina, we need to apply a pan photocoagulation of the retina immediately.
Diabetic retinopathy with common retinal detachment, this patient wasn't diagnosed on time; his/her evaluation took place months after first experimentation a decrease on his visual field.
During the ophthalmologic evaluation, the doctor determines if a patient suffers from diabetic retinopathy or not. The doctor may diagnose how advanced is the retinopathy with the aid of retinal flour angiography, thus determining the treatment to follow to avoid the disease's progress and revert -to a certain degree- the damages.
We can say that a retinal pan photocoagulation is necessary in case that an ophthalmologic examination finds neovascularization. It is impossible for the patient to know how advanced is the retinopathy without a proper examination. The eye may require treatment even if the patient has good vision in both eyes. The basis for a retinopathy management is a timely ophthalmologic exam so this disease is given an early treatment, thus avoiding blindness. A patient treated on time will enjoy proper eye-sight for the rest of his/her life.
