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Diabetic Eye Exams

What can I expect during a diabetic eye exam?

When you come to Whitson Vision for a diabetic eye exam, Dr. Whitson and the team conduct a set of comprehensive tests using their state-of-the-art diagnostic equipment. They screen for a series of potential eye diseases that occur as a result of diabetes so they can identify problems early and prescribe effective treatments to prevent the conditions from worsening or causing irreversible damage to your eyes and vision.

A diabetic exam includes advanced screening for:

Our physicians also checks the overall health of your eyes and evaluates your vision and any trouble you may be having seeing clearly.

What is diabetic retinopathy?

Diabetic retinopathy is an eye condition that affects people who have both Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes. It develops when the blood vessels in your retina become damaged as a result of diabetes. The retina is the light-sensitive part of the back of your eye that allows you to focus on images and send messages to your brain.

If your retina deteriorates, you can lose your vision. The longer you live with diabetes, the more susceptible you are to developing diabetic retinopathy.

What are the symptoms of diabetic retinopathy?

Symptoms of diabetic retinopathy usually progress slowly and worsen over time if left untreated. Common signs of the condition include:

Diabetic retinopathy usually affects both eyes at the same time. If you experience any of these symptoms in either eye, a diabetic eye exam indicates the underlying cause.

How often should I get an eye exam if I have diabetes?

According to the American Diabetes Association, if you’ve been diagnosed with diabetes, you should get a professional medical eye exam every year. Our physicians evaluate your eye health and your risk factors for developing diabetic eye diseases so they can recommend a regular exam schedule to monitor your eyes. Early detection of retinal abnormalities is the best way to keep diabetic eye conditions under control.

Making healthy lifestyle changes can also make an impact on how quickly diabetes affects your eyes. Learn more about what you can do to prevent vision loss by calling Whitson Vision or scheduling an appointment online today.

Diabetic Retinopathy

If you have diabetes you need to take special care and attention with your eyesight. Approximately sixteen million people in the USA have diabetes and 1/3 of them do not know it. People with diabetes are 25 times more likely to become blind than people without it. Diabetic eye disease refers to a collection of eyesight impairing problems that people with diabetes may develop such as diabetic retinopathy, macular degeneration, and retinal detachment. Early detection of problems related to diabetes can mean the difference between seeing and not seeing. Please get regular eye exams. Call us for more information.

Diabetic eye disease typically involves a series of potential diseases and eye problems that occur as a result of a patient being diabetic. All of these diabetic eye diseases or issues can actually cause permanent vision loss due to the fact that they all focus around the area of the retina and the optic nerve. It is important to understand that the optic nerve is responsible for transmitting the images collected by the eye to the brain. Some of the main diabetic eye diseases include diabetic retinopathy, glaucoma, retinal detachment, and even the development of cataract sooner than expected.

Diabetic Retinopathy is a very serious eye disease and leading cause of adult vision loss that affects the retina. The retina is a very important part of transmitting visual images to the brain. This disease is caused by extreme changes in the blood vessels near the retina. These blood vessels actually swell up and leak. In other cases of diabetic retinopathy patients experience blood vessels that expand and grow on the surface of the retina.