Diabetes Specialist
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Ventura Eye Institute, Inc.
LASIK Surgeons & Ophthalmologists located in Camarillo, CA
A diabetes diagnosis comes with a multitude of complications, and it can be difficult to keep up with the many treatments that you need. Luckily, you’ll have little to worry about when it comes to your vision and the effects that your diabetes have on it. Located in Camarillo, California, the Ventura Eye Institute offers technologies for the treatment of diabetic retinopathy, including lasers and medications. Call or schedule an appointment online today to find out the best course of treatment for your diabetic retinopathy and all other diabetes-related optical complications. Ventura Eye Institute welcomes patients in the following surrounding areas: Ventura, Oxnard, Simi Valley, Thousand Oaks, Moorpark, and the greater Ventura County.
Diabetes
What is diabetic retinopathy?
Diabetes affects your body’s ability to create or utilize insulin properly to control your blood sugar levels. If there’s too much sugar in your blood, it can cause damage to many parts of your body, including your eyes.
Diabetic retinopathy occurs when the small blood vessels in your retina begin to swell, leak, or close off. Sometimes, new blood vessels will develop on the surface of your eye in order to compensate for these changes, which can affect your vision.
Even if you don’t develop diabetic retinopathy, diabetes can still affect your vision. The shape of your lenses can change with the fluxes in your blood sugar levels, so your vision may become blurry. In these cases, the blurriness typically corrects itself.
Am I at a high risk of developing diabetic retinopathy?
If you have diabetes, you may be at a higher risk of developing diabetic retinopathy if:
- You’re pregnant
- You have high blood pressure
- You have high blood lipids
- You’ve had diabetes for a long time
- You don’t get annual eye exams
For these reasons, it’s important to get your eyes checked regularly if you have diabetes. Your provider can help you determine the best course of treatment depending on your background and the severity of your diabetic retinopathy.
What are my treatment options?
There are a number of treatment options for diabetic retinopathy, including medications and laser treatments. Of course, proper treatment of your general diabetes can help prevent you from developing diabetic retinopathy in the first place. If you do have diabetic retinopathy, some of the treatments include:
VEGF
In advanced cases of diabetic retinopathy, an injection of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) can help stop the growth of new blood vessels in your eye. The medication stops the growth signals that your body uses to tell the vessels to keep growing and expanding. Your provider may recommend this medication by itself or in combination with a photocoagulation treatment.
Photocoagulation
Photocoagulation is a treatment that involves using lasers to stop or slow the leaking of fluids in your eye. During the procedure, which occurs at the office, your provider uses a laser to burn the abnormal blood vessels and stop them from causing further damage.
If you’ve developed diabetic retinopathy, call or schedule an appointment online at Ventura Eye Institute today.
