Check the symptoms of “diabetic retinopathy”, know quickly, treat quickly, reduce the risk of vision loss.

Talk with an ophthalmologist and learn about “diabetic retinopathy.” Advise patients to check their eyes regularly. Know quickly, treat quickly. If left untreated for a long time, vision may be lost.

It is well known that “Diabetes” It is a disease that cannot be cured. And patients with this disease must take care of their health at all times. We may have heard that we must “control diabetes well” because if we don’t take care of it continuously, Will cause serious complications. and may be life-threatening.

This is from information from the Department of Disease Control. The Ministry of Public Health found that diabetic patients are likely to continue to increase. In 2023, there were 300,000 new patients per year, and in 2022, there were 3.3 million people with diabetes, an increase from In 2021, up to 150,000 people.

At the same time, it was also found that 1 in 10 people with diabetes It is type 2 diabetes that occurs when the body is unable to produce enough insulin to meet the needs of more than 90%. Importantly, most people aged 35 years and over have not been screened for diabetes, as many as 5 million people from the nationwide target. country of 22 million people as well

In addition, most diabetic patients often have complications such as foot wound infection in diabetic patients. and diabetic retinopathy Or what teenagers call it until it becomes a catch phrase, “sweet to the eye, sweet to the leg” when they encounter food. Or desserts that have a very sweet taste.

Dr. Siriphong Sinprajakphon, ophthalmologist from Praram 9 Hospital Explain that we have heard that patients with diabetes may need to be careful of diabetic retinopathy. and foot ulcers causing risk factors until having to have that leg amputated In fact, both types are considered complications of diabetes.

This is because diabetes results in abnormally high blood sugar levels. Make small blood vessels That is distributed throughout our body is a problem. Locations that have a high density of blood vessels, such as the eyes, kidneys, and the areas of the hands and feet, are the locations of these organs that show abnormalities for us to see first.

If it’s a problem at the toe The patient will experience tissue ischemia. This will result in the wound rotting and dying. That is why having diabetes requires leg amputation. As for the kidneys, there will be kidney deterioration.

Finally, the eyes are considered to be the location where there are small blood vessels. There are a lot of Therefore, when you have diabetes, there will be a lack of blood supply to the retinal tissue. Causes abnormal bleeding and swollen retina if very severe. It can cause blindness.

for “Symptoms of diabetic retinopathy” It occurs in a group of patients diagnosed with diabetes. For the initial symptoms of diabetic retinopathy Most patients will not have any abnormalities in their vision. This is why ophthalmologists recommend that patients with diabetes have regular eye exams to screen for abnormalities at an early stage so that treatment can be initiated in the beginning. This will see better results than leaving it and then treating it on the back.

If diabetic patients leave it and did not perform a medical examination In the first stage, there will be blurred vision. or vision becomes abnormal, such as blurred vision, seeing a shadow in the middle See a distorted image This may be caused by a swollen macula.

As for the more severe cases or leave it for a long time until it causes “Diabetic retinopathy” As a result, the blood vessels in the eye are abnormal. Fibrosis, retinal detachment, and large amounts of blood in the vitreous humor may occur. Dark vision may also occur. And these symptoms can cause permanent vision loss.

Dr. Siriphong He said that treatment will depend on the stage of the disease the patient has. But initially, if the patient begins to have symptoms “Diabetic retinopathy” The most important thing is to treat the root cause. We will focus on controlling blood sugar levels.

In addition, we found that in patients with diabetic retinopathy If there are complications such as high blood pressure have high blood fat It is necessary to treat such diseases together as well. Because it is considered an important factor that causes diabetic retinopathy to increase.

The doctor will advise you to adjust your lifestyle and lifestyle in addition to controlling your diet. If smoking is present, it must be stopped immediately. Because cigarettes cause more damage to blood vessels. Increased risk of eye diabetes

But if the patient has diabetic retinopathy that is at a high level, such as starting to have more bleeding in the eyeball We may need laser treatment. It shoots a laser at the outer retina. To reduce the amount of oxygen in the tissues in the eye. and reduces the secretion of substances that stimulate abnormal blood vessels from diabetic retinopathy.

If the patient has other complications such as a swollen retina as well. Current treatment is injected into the vitreous fluid of the eye. To reduce swelling of retinal tissue

In more serious cases, such as allowing fibrosis to develop. Pulls the retina to peel off or that there is a large amount of blood in the vitreous humor May need to be treated with surgery. The choice of treatment method will be determined according to the stage of the disease. and depends on each patient This is because some patients will require more than one treatment together, such as injections and laser therapy. or injections combined with surgery

However, if the patient comes in for treatment early. In cases that are still mild Or is it just a matter of retinal swelling from diabetic retinopathy? Using injections to treat It is considered to have quite good performance. The recovery of vision will gradually improve.

But in the case if the symptoms appear a little more There is a lot of blood in the eyeball. For these, the treatment must use several methods of treatment together. which will require continuous treatment and must come to the hospital every month

If it goes to a severe level I have a lot of diabetes. There is a large amount of blood in the eye. There is beginning to be a membrane pulling on the retina. Some of the patients received laser treatment. But the disease cannot be stopped. Finally, the patient will be treated with surgery.

We will perform surgery to clean out the blood. Cut out all the vitreous tissue that is bleeding, and then peel off the membrane. Do the laser to cover the entire area. Once the surgery is complete, the patient returns for regular checkups. It can calm diabetic retinopathy.

“We already know that Diabetes is not cured. But using drugs to control blood sugar allows patients to live as close to normal as possible. The eyes are the same. The main aim is to stop the disease from getting worse. Keep your remaining vision from getting worse. Therefore, patients who have undergone treatment and their disease is in remission still need to be monitored periodically.”

Dr. Siriphong It is also said that diabetes does not affect the retina alone. But diabetes also increases the incidence of cataracts in patients. This makes the patient more likely to develop cataracts faster. And there may be complications with glaucoma. Equal to increasing the chance of the patient losing their vision. or blind as well

In addition, patients with diabetes mellitus or the immune system is not normal In the event that there is a wound around the eye or the various corneal surfaces It increases the chance of corneal infection. Or according to the wound that we had more surgery than in general. Therefore it can be called Diabetes affects the entire eye.

Currently, tools for diagnosing diseases related to the eyes It is considered to have developed a lot. For example, Screening of patients with diabetic retinopathy Traditionally, eye drops were used to dilate the pupils. To examine the retina in detail Some patients may not be comfortable using eye dilating drops.

By Praram 9 Hospital There is a new generation of ophthalmoscopes that can take pictures. and connect the image to reveal an area of ​​the retina of approximately 200 degrees, which is considered sufficient to diagnose the disease. If compared to the cameras in the past that could only take pictures of the retina at 50 degrees, resulting in insufficient sensitivity for treatment.

At the same time, the matter of medicines for treating patients with diabetic retinopathy has developed quite far. The medicine used is considered very effective. But there are limitations in the early stages: Patients need to receive medication every month for the first 4-6 months. We found that there is a chance that vision will recover. Close to normal, as high as 60-70%.

Dr. Siriphong also gave advice on eye care for the general public. Today we use screens such as smartphones, computers, and TVs more than in the past. We can clearly see that People who use their eyes on the screen a lot There will be continuous focus. Causes myopia to be more severe than normal. The doctor therefore would like to recommend If we use the screen for about 1-2 hours, there may be a 5-10 minute break.

During the break, try to find a point of focus that is far away. To relax the eye muscles It will help reduce the occurrence of eye muscle spasms. Reduce eye muscle fatigue Or help reduce the occurrence of nearsightedness more than usual.

At the same time, if we use our eyes for a long time Staring at the screen for a long time Our blinking will decrease. These will cause dry eyes as a result. It mostly occurs in workers who have to use screens for a long time all day, 8 hours or more per day. The doctor recommended adding artificial tear drops during the day. This will help reduce symptoms of dry eyes.

For those who have dry eyes Eating foods that contain omega-3 or Omega-3 can help reduce dry eyes. And in the case of a condition that is a specific eye disease, such as the issue of macular degeneration There is a study that Taking vitamins A and C, as well as vitamin D and zinc. May help slow down the deterioration of the macula. But in the case if there is still no problem with the deterioration of the macula Taking vitamins may not have any obvious effect.

Finally, it’s about taking care of your body. Whether it’s effective sleep or rest Including adjusting the diet, for example if we eat foods that contain various vitamins and minerals. Sufficient to meet the needs will help enhance and reduce eye deterioration as well.