What’s Diabetic Retinopathy

& How is it Diagnosed?

Diabetic Retinopathy is a condition caused by elevated blood sugar levels, causing damage or abnormal growth of blood vessels in the retina. This damage can include swelling, leaking, or closing and if untreated, can lead to permanent loss of vision. Dr. Ali at Texas Eye Surgeons can detect diabetic retinopathy through the following three ways:

Dilation: doctor puts drops in the patient’s eyes to widen the pupil. This allows the doctor to use a special lens to look inside of their eye and view any abnormal growth or damage to the blood vessels of the retina.

Fluorescein Angiography: a yellow dye called fluorescein is injected and travels through the body’s blood. A special camera takes pictures of the retina as the dye moves through its blood vessels. These photos will allow the doctor to spot abnormal blood vessels in the eye’s retina.

Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT): With OCT a machine scans the retina, providing a detailed image of the retina’s thickness that allows for measuring of the swelling in the macula – a small but critical area in the center of the retina that’s responsible for detailed, central vision.

Diabetic Retinopathy

Treatment Options in Plano

There are multiple treatments for diabetic retinopathy. One being, medication injections in the eye itself containing either a steroid or a medication known as anti-VEGF. Both of these help to reduce the swelling of the macula which will slow vision loss and may even correct some loss of vision. Another being laser surgery, with concentrated laser beams used to reduce swelling in the retina and seal off leaking blood vessels to prevent them from growing again. Vitrectomy is a surgery for advanced diabetic retinopathy. The ophthalmologist removes blood from leaking vessels and some vitreous gel from the back of the eye. The doctor may also remove scar tissue from the retina, allowing the light rays to properly focus.

Schedule a Consultation Today with Texas Eye Surgeons in Plano, TX Today!
Call Texas Eye Surgeons in Plano, TX at (972) 379-3937 or stop into their office at 4108 W 15th Street, Suite 200 to schedule an appointment today.