"India is the diabetic capital, the moment you are diagnosed with diabetes, you get your eye screen regularly," says Dr Hitendra Mehta, Head, Clinical Services, Tardeo at Dr Agarwals Eye Hospital. As per the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, diabetic eye disease is a group of eye problems that can affect people with diabetes. These conditions include diabetic retinopathy, diabetic macular edema, cataracts, and glaucoma.Over time, diabetes can cause damage to your eyes that can lead to poor vision or even blindness. But you can take steps to prevent diabetic eye disease, or keep it from getting worse, by taking care of your diabetes.This is why, ahead of World Retina Day, which is observed on the last Sunday of September, Dr Agarwals Eye Hospital organized a webinar to discuss the rising retinal diseases and to emphasize on the urgency of early screening. Dr Mehta noted that due the increasing sedentary lifestyle in the urban areas, more cases of diabetes show up there. Seconding with this, Dr Pritam K Mohite, Head Clinical Service, Virar at Dr Agarwals Eye Hospital, said that there is now an increase in young patients with diabetic retinopathy. What Happens In Diabetic Retinopathy?In diabetic retinopathy, high blood sugar levels from diabetes damage the blood vessels in the retina, causing them to swell, leak fluid, or bleed. This damage can lead to blurred vision, dark spots (floaters), difficulty seeing at night, and distorted vision, and in advanced stages, abnormal new blood vessels can grow, potentially causing severe vision loss or blindness from conditions like macular edema or retinal detachment. "Patients often come to us when they see bleeding from the eye or vision loss, and tell us that it all happened in the morning, so suddenly. But it never happens suddenly, this usually happens over a period of time," points out Dr Mehta. Even Dr Mahesh Shiv Sharan Singh, Consultant Ophthalmologist, Chembur at Dr Agarwals Eye says that patients recognize the problem and by the time they come to doctor, it is very late. "This is why a regular eye screening is important," says Dr Singh. He also points out, "retina is the only place in the entire body that gives you a direct view to your body's vessels, so it works as a window to your body and doctor can tell just by one look what is wrong with your body, heart, brain and more."Symptoms That People Should Look Out ForDr Singh points out that most retinal diseases develop gradually, without noticeable symptoms, which is what makes early detection challenging. However, there are certain symptoms one must look out for, which may seem casual, but could actually lead to retinal diseases. They include:Vision Changes: blurred or distorted visionNew Visual Phenomena: sudden appearance of floaters, flashes of lightVisual Field Defects: dark patches, blind spots, or curtain-like shadowsFunctional Difficulties: trouble reading, recognizing faces, or performing detailed tasks can signal central, vision problemCall To ActionAll of them suggest that the only way to be a step ahead of this is by seeking help, avoiding any self diagnosis and getting your eye screened and acting quickly on it. As Dr Mehta rightly points out, "There are stages of diabetic retinopathy and it does not happen in just one day. If you get your eye screen and get a diagnosis early, then there is no way that we cannot save the eye. We can always prevent vision loss."
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