Diabetic retinopathy

Health encyclopaedia - Alphabetical Topic List

| A |

| B |

| C |

| D |

| E |

| F |

| G |

| H |

| I |

| J |

| K |

| L |

| M |

| N |

| O |

| P |

| Q |

| R |

| S |

| T |

| U |

| V |

| W |

| X |

| Y |

Diabetic retinopathy is now one of the most common causes of blindness in the Western world. It is a disease of small blood vessels in the retina of the eye. Damage to these vessels causes blood leakage (haemorrhage), which may be small and confined to the retina or may extend forward into the jelly that fills the main cavity of the eye (the vitreous gel). This has serious effects on vision.

The growth of fronds of new and fragile blood vessels on the surface of the retina, especially around the head of the optic nerve (the optic disc), is also a feature of this kind of retinopathy, and these new vessels bleed easily.

One of the important reasons for routine eye examinations is that if new vessel formation is detected early, it may be treated effectively and the dangerous vessels dispersed by applying multiple laser burns to the periphery (outside edges) of the retina.