Test Your Eye

What is Diabetic Retinopathy

This eye disease is caused by high blood sugar and high blood pressure: over time, this can damage the blood vessels in the back of the eye.

This eye disease is caused by high blood sugar and high blood pressure: over time, this can damage the blood vessels in the back of the eye.

The disease usually affects both eyes, though one can be affected more than the other, and is caused when a patients blood pressure or blood sugar are too high. Over time, this can damage the blood vessels that supply blood to the retina in the eye, which coverts light into electrical signals and sends them to the brain. If the retina does not get the blood it needs, it can not work properly, meaning vision is affected. It can eventually cause permanent blindness.

The disease is progressive: at first, the blood vessels start to leak and eventually cause bleeding inside the eyes. There are three stages of retinopathy that mainly affect the central part of the retina and can cause permanent blindness, while a different type of the disease, called maculopathy, affects the middle of the eye.