Diabetic Eye Care
At New York Ophthalmology, we strive to make high quality eye care accessible to everyone in the communities we serve, especially those with diabetes. If left untreated, diabetes can lead to serious vision issues that can damage your eyesight. With our expert care, we can help preserve and protect the vision and quality of life of our patients with diabetes.
What is Diabetic Retinopathy?
Diabetes causes high blood sugar, which can potentially block the blood vessels connected to the retina. Your eyes will attempt to compensate for this by growing new blood vessels, but these often develop incorrectly and can damage the retina. Over time, this condition can lead to poor blood flow, inflammation, and even vision loss if not properly managed. There are two main stages of diabetic retinopathy: non-proliferative and proliferative.
Non-Proliferative Diabetic Retinopathy
The early stage of diabetic retinopathy occurs when the structure of the retina begins to change and small bulbs in the blood vessels, known as microaneurysms, are visible. Eventually, these vessels become swollen, blocked, and can start to hemorrhage.
Proliferative Diabetic Retinopathy
The advanced stage of the condition occurs when there is abnormal blood vessel growth in the retina area. During proliferative diabetic retinopathy, these abnormal blood vessels can leak into the eye’s vitreous — the gel-like fluid that fills your eye — and potentially cause serious health issues.
Diabetic Retinopathy Symptoms
Your symptoms will depend on how severe your diabetes is and far the condition has progressed. Initially, you may not notice any issues. This makes diabetic eye exams a crucial part of diabetic eye care because it allows our team to check for any early signs of the disease, such as microaneurysms. If left untreated, the abnormal vessels will continue to develop and cause spotty vision, flashes of light, and vision loss, as well as other serious health concerns.
Don’t Risk Your Vision — Schedule a Diabetic Eye Exam Today!
Early detection is our best defense against diabetic retinopathy and other diabetic conditions. If you have diabetes, don’t wait until it’s too late —
schedule your exam now!
Other Common Diabetic Conditions
Diabetes can put you at a high risk of developing certain other eye diseases, like glaucoma, diabetic macular edema, retinal detachment, and cataracts. Other risk factors for developing diabetic eye conditions include untreated high cholesterol, smoking, age, and race.
How We Care for Diabetic Patients
Our expert diabetic eye doctors are skilled in diagnosing, managing, and treating diabetic retinopathy and other eye conditions that are common for people with diabetes. During our diabetic eye exams, we’ll thoroughly check your eyes for indicators of diabetic eye conditions and identify potential issues before they can affect your vision. We personalize all our treatment plans, including our diabetic eye care, so you’ll always have the solutions you need for healthy eyesight.
Meet Your Diabetic
Eye Care Specialists
At New York Ophthalmology, we take pride in improving our patients lives through better vision. We’re well known for our world class diabetic eye doctors who provide compassionate, attentive eye care. We’ll take the time to get to know you and how diabetes is affecting your sight and provide you with the treatments you need to keep you seeing clearly.
