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Diabetic Retinopathy

It is microvascular changes that occur in one's retina over a period of time during which his/her sugar control is not upto the mark. How do you know if you have diabetic retinopathy(DR), well answer to that question is simple, just have to see a ophthalmologist, a retina specialist to be more specific. What should I expect during my retina consult? In case you are found to have no evidence of DR you will be asked to review at least once a year for routine retina check up. The disease has its staging and the retina specialist is the one who is experienced enough to stage the disease accurately and call for follow-up at intervals according to the stage of your DR as per global guidelines. What if I have blurring of vision in DR? If your vision is blurred due to DR diagnosed by a retina specialist then there could be 3 reasons 1. Due to Diabetic macular edema, which can be treated with a wide range of treatment option like laser, intravitreal injections or simply by instilling drops. Now the duration and frequency of treatment has to be tailored for each individual for which again the retina specialist with his experience plans. However recurrence of this edema do occur vastly because of poor control of diabetes. 2. Due to vitreous hemorrhage, tractional retinal detachments or combined detachments, in this cases retina surgery is what is recommended by retina surgeons. Again the outcome depends on control of diabetes and pre-existing state of your retina. 3. Retina itself has become ischemic with permanent degenerative changes which are irreversible can also lead to vision loss. So as you can understand that the disease is Progressive one either slow or fast depends greatly on your Diabetic control and treatment becomes more and more complicated and expensive with minimal scope of improvement. Hence regular timely follow-ups with your retina specialist is what is recommended.