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- Vitrectomy
- Zeiss Argon & Diode Green Laser
- Zeiss Fundus Fluorescein Angiogram
- OCT Cirrus
- Microscopes
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Normal Vision |
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Same Scene Viewed by a Person
with Diabetic Retinopathy |
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Diabetic retinopathy is retinopathy (damage to the retina) caused by complications of diabetes mellitus, which can eventually lead to blindness. It is an ocular manifestation of systemic disease which affects up to 80% of all patients who have had diabetes for 10 years or more. Despite these intimidating statistics, research indicates that at least 90% of these new cases could be reduced if there was proper and vigilant treatment and monitoring of the eyes citation.
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Signs and Symptoms
Diabetic retinopathy often has no early warning
signs. Even macular edema, which may cause vision
loss more rapidly, may not have any warning
signs for some time. In general, however, a
person with macular edema is likely to have
blurred vision, making it hard to do things
like read or drive. In some cases, the vision
will get better or worse during the day.
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What is the Treatment for Diabetic Retinopathy?
 The treatment of diabetic retinopathy is decided on the basis
of the stage of the disease. In the very initial stages, it
just requires periodic follow up to look for progression of
disease. The ophthalmologist decides when to see a patient next
depending upon the severity of changes in the retina.
Later when the disease is more advanced he/she may decide to
treat it with one or more of the following options:
Laser Treatment : There are well-defined criteria for
laser therapy. Laser therapy is done when there is significant
maculopathy, or when there are significant new blood vessels
in the retina or iris.
Anti-VEGF agents (Lucentis, Avastin, Macugen) : These
agents are being used in some selective cases alone or in addition
to laser treatment or surgery.
Surgery : Vitrectomy surgery and other additional procedures
may be required to manage the complications of diabetic retinopathy,
like vitreous hemorrhage, retinal detachment, severe macular
edema, etc.
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