Diabetes and the Eye

Diabetic Retinopathy

Diabetes causes damage to the blood vessels that nourish the retina. In people with diabetes, the retinal blood vessels may expand and leak fluid. This is an early form of diabetic retinopathy called nonproliferative or background retinopathy. You may not notice any change in your vision when you develop this early form of the disease, but it can lead to other more serious forms of retinopathy that affect your vision.

When fluid collects in the macula (the part of the retina that allows us to see fine details), reading and other close work may become difficult. This is called macular edema.

Fragile, new blood vessels may grow on the surface of the retina. This is termed proliferative retinopathy. These new blood vessels can lead to serious vision problems, because the new vessels can break and bleed into the vitreous. When the vitreous becomes clouded with blood, light is prevented from passing through the eye to the retina. This can blur or distort vision.

The new blood vessels can also cause scar tissue to develop, which can pull the retina away from the back of the eye. This is known as retinal detachment, and can lead to blindness if not treated. The new blood vessels may lead to a type of glaucoma called neovascular glaucoma that is very difficult to treat and often causes a blind, painful eye.