Complications of Diabetes

The article aims to provide selective information about complications of diabetes. There are primarily two types of complications observed in diabetes they are short and long term. Here we will talk about long term complications of diabetes.

Diabetic Retinopathy : Diabetes-related eye complications are really common. It is the major cause of loss of sight and visual sensation problem nowadays. If allowed untreated, they cause the impairment of vision and finally loss of sight.

Diabetic Retinopathy is induced by damage to the minor blood vessels of the retina in the back of the eye. The small vessels can be damaged by high blood sugar and hypertension. Therefore an individual who suffers from high blood pressure is at a higher risk of acquiring diabetic retinopathy than those who have a normal blood pressure. The high blood sugar level obstruct the blood circulation, and thus oxygen, to the cells of retina. This hampers the working of retina and thus results to improper vision. The initial phase of this disease is named non - proliferate diabetic retinopathy, characterised by the growth of periodic small scale blisters induced by enlarged capillary vessels and small hemorrhages on the surface of the retina. Moderately dangerous to very severe non-proliferative diabetic retinopathy is also known as pre-proliferative diabetic retinopathy. The dimmed and deformed sight happens because of macular edema.

Proliferative diabetic retinopathy is the advanced phase of diabetic retinopathy ; the new blood vessels split up, as they are weak and leak blood into clear gel of the eye, which will lead to floating points in the eye, obstructing vision. The rate of impairment is not alike in both the eyes but, both the eyes are infected by this disease. Some times one eye is infected more quickly than other. After some time period, the swollen and scar nerve tissue of the retina is altogether damaged and pulls up the whole layer of retina and cuts it off from the back of the eye. Detachment of the retina is the reason behind loss of sight among diabetics in middle age. A diabetic must go for the periodical eye examination so that the initial stages of diabetic retinopathy may be identified and cared for in initial phases itself, with less harm to the eyes. Blood glucose levels should as well be monitored and maintained to avoid blood vessel injury.

Treatment.

There is no pharmaceutical therapy you can find presently that puts a stop to the development of diabetic retinopathy by caring for the underlying procedure of micro vascular impairment. Present day treatment alternatives (generally reserved for later phase pre-proliferative and proliferative diabetic retinopathy and sight-threatening diabetic macular oedema) include two different kinds of laser surgical procedure. Laser therapy seals off the leaking out blood vessels in the macula, slowing down the swelling that induces defective visual sensation. This procedure does not improve dimmed vision but it can prevent it from deterioration. While laser surgical procedure can normally prevent vision from dropping, in most cases it can not fix sight that has already been lost.