Definition:

Diabetes is increased levels of blood Glucose level that may require insulin shots.

Risk factors:

Whether you have type 1 or type 2 diabetes. Your risk increases the longer you have the disease. Type 1 is at higher risk because of their longer standing affection by high blood Glucose levels.

Whatever your age, if you need to take insulin, your risk of diabetic eye diseases is higher.

Other risk factors for diabetic eye diseases include:

• Poorly controlled blood glucose levels.
• Kidney disease.
• High blood pressure.
• High blood lipids.
• Increased glucose levels in blood and urine, affects the whole body, especially on the eye.
• It can affect all ocular tissue especially the retina (The tissue of the eye that acts like the negative film of the camera).

In the following few lines, we would shed more light on the relationship between diabetes and eye diseases.

Diabetic eye diseases

 Symptoms:

Collectively, diabetes can cause the following symptoms:

• Blurry vision
• Haziness
• Pale colors
• Eye floaters
• Glare
• Watery eyes
• Dry eyes
• Halos around visual field
• And eventually: total vision loss.

Signs:

The most important eye diseases caused by diabetes is:

• Cataract
• Glaucoma
• Diabetic retinopathy.

**know more about cataract & how to treat it through this link**

**know more about glaucoma & how to treat it through this link**

**know more about retinal detachment & its treatment through this link**

When to Seek Medical Advice:

“If you can see well that does not mean your eyes is not affected!”

Regular examination of your eyes is a must!

Whether you suffer from any symptoms or not, you must visit your ophthalmologist as frequent as once every year!

Regular eye examinations that prevention is better than cure you should have a regular comprehensive medical examination to control your blood sugar and keep eye tests with your doctor."

Treatment

• Cataract: surgery
• Glaucoma: regular checkups, medications and laser therapy.
• Diabetic retinopathy: Panretinal photocoagulation, Vitrectomy or Photocoagulation.