The Four Stages of Diabetic Retinopathy
The Four Stages of Diabetic Retinopathy
People with diabetes can be at risk of developing an eye disease called diabetic retinopathy. This disease can come about when there is too much blood sugar, or glucose, circulating in the blood of a diabetic person.
High levels of glucose can cause damage to the small blood vessels in the retina of the eye and lead to unwanted symptoms such as blurry vision and even vision loss. Diabetic retinopathy can even spur the development of new and abnormal blood vessel formation within the retinal area.
For people with diabetes, it is therefore quite important to keep blood sugar levels at a healthy level. High levels of blood sugar negatively impact various parts of a diabetic person’s body, including the eyes.
Diabetic retinopathy is a progressive disease and can get worse if not controlled and treated properly by both the patient and their eye doctor. These eye care professionals understand how to diagnose and help slow down diabetic retinopathy before it gets worse.
It’s important to understand the different types and stages of diabetic retinopathy. First off, the two different stages are known as nonproliferative and proliferative. The nonproliferative stage consists of the early stages of the disease and the proliferative stage occurs when the disease has reached more advanced levels.
Stage 1: Mild nonproliferative diabetic retinopathy
During stage one, small bulges known as microaneurysms appear in the blood vessels that exist behind the eyes and in the retina. These bulges may leak a small amount of blood and can be a common occurrence for people with diabetes.
At this stage, eyesight remains unaffected but there is an increased risk of developing future vision problems. If you visit your eye doctor, they will advise you to take caution to prevent things from getting worse. If both eyes are affected, the person at hand has a 25% chance of the disease reaching higher stages in the future.
Stage 2: Pre-proliferative retinopathy
During stage two, one can see a more severe and widespread impact on the retinal area, including bleeding. The risk that vision will eventually be affected in a negative manner is now at a high level and your eye doctor will recommend that you come in to have your eyes monitored on a more regular basis.
Stage 3: Proliferative retinopathy
In stage three, the retinal area has now formed scar tissue and new blood vessels. This can cause lots of bleeding and even make the retina pull away from the back of the eye (known as retinal detachment). Unfortunately, the risk of vision loss becomes even higher during stage three and your eye doctor will do their best to treat your eyes to help stabilize the condition. Any damage or vision loss that has already occurred however will not be possible to recover or restore.
Stage 4: Proliferative diabetic retinopathy (diabetic maculopathy)
In the final stage of diabetic retinopathy, the disease has reached an advanced stage and new blood vessels have formed within the central area of the retina known as the macula. These new blood vessels are very delicate and have a high risk of leaking fluid. As a result of this leakage, the person at hand is at risk of developing various different vision problems including blindness, blurred vision, and a reduced field of vision.
In stage four, your eye doctor may refer you to a hospital specialist to discuss additional treatment options that can stop the disease from getting even worse.
Conclusion
As you can see, diabetic retinopathy can become a quite serious problem for diabetics that are unable to keep their blood sugar levels to a healthy level. Thankfully, there are many ways in which people can manage their blood sugar and reduce their risk of developing eye problems down the road. Some good ways to do so include eating a healthy diabetic diet, staying active on a regular basis, and taking any medication your doctor has prescribed to manage diabetes.