DiabetesDiabetes mellitus, SugarDiabetes is a condition in which blood glucose stays too high, either because the body makes too little insulin or because it has stopped responding to it. Pakistan has one of the highest rates in the world, and a large share of people with it do not yet know.
Diabetic retinopathy
Pronounced ret-in-OP-uh-thee
Also known as Diabetic eye disease
Damage to the small blood vessels at the back of the eye caused by years of high blood sugar. It causes no symptoms until it is advanced.
The retina is fed by the finest blood vessels in the body, and they are among the first things sustained high damages. They leak, close off, and eventually the eye grows fragile new vessels that bleed.
What protects your sight
- A dilated eye examination at least once a year, every year, from diagnosis
- Blood sugar and blood pressure kept near target
- Not smoking
Treated early with laser or injections, most sight-threatening retinopathy can be halted.
Related terms
- HbA1cGlycated haemoglobin, A1cHbA1c measures the proportion of haemoglobin that has sugar stuck to it, which reflects the average blood glucose over roughly the past three months. It needs no fasting and is used both to diagnose diabetes and to judge how well it is controlled.
- Diabetic neuropathyDiabetic nerve damage, Peripheral neuropathyNerve damage from long-standing high blood sugar, usually starting in the feet as numbness, tingling or burning.
- Diabetic nephropathyDiabetic kidney disease, DKDKidney damage caused by diabetes. It is silent in the early stages and is found by a urine test, not by symptoms.