Diabetic Eye Disease - Part One
| Diabetic Eye Disease - Part One |
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| Date: November 12, 2006 | |
November is Diabetic Eye Disease Awareness Month During the month of November Eye To Eye will concentrate on Diabetic Eye Disease in recognition of Diabetic Eye Disease Awareness Month. Please pass the information on to your family and friends who could benefit and potentially preserve their vision from this valuable information. Diabetes is the seventh leading cause of death in the U.S. The incidence is drastically on the rise. Experts at the Center for Disease Control believe children born in the year 2000 have a 33% lifetime incidence of contracting diabetes. At this time, there are approximately 29 million Americans age 20 and older that have diabetes. One third of theses patients are undiagnosed. This puts an alarming number of people at additional risk for vision loss because they don't know they have diabetes. Diabetic Retinopathy is the leading cause of blindness in the industrial world ages 25 to 74. By the year 2020 it is estimated that diabetic eye disease will increase by 50%. Studies are constantly being conducted to update our knowledge about this disease and its effects on the eye. The following are a small sample. Study Says Diabetics More Likely to Have Dry Eyes March 2005 - A study evaluating the use of lubricating eye drops revealed that diabetic patients in a general population are more likely to have dry eye symptoms. Researchers concluded that inadequate blood sugar control in diabetic patients appears associated with development of dry eye. The study for one year compared electronic medical records of 159,634 patients older than age 50. The study found that 20.6 percent of diabetic patients needed lubricating eye drops, compared with 13.8 percent of non-diabetic patients. The study, reported in the American Journal of Ophthalmology, also found significantly increased use of lubrication eye drops among diabetic patients who had poor blood sugar control. Can Low Dose Aspirin Reduce Eye Damage From Diabetic Retinopathy? Boston, March 2006 - Different study results in recent years indicate that low dose aspirin might help reduce the risk of vision loss from a diabetic eye disease known as diabetic retinopathy. Patients with diabetic retinopathy should always consult their doctor first before trying any kind of therapy on their own, including low dose aspirin. But positive effects of aspirin as a preventive measure against damage from this diabetic eye disease once again were confirmed in a recent study conducted by Schepens Eye Research Institute, Harvard Medical School, in Boston. Study results announced in late 2005 demonstrated that low doses of aspirin given to diabetic rats helped reduce swelling and breakdown of tiny blood vessels in the inner back of the eye (retina), a condition associated with diabetic retinopathy. Research is continuing to determine minimal dosages of aspirin that might offer a protective effect against eye damage from diabetic retinopathy. Diabetic Eye Disease Likely to Progress in African Americans Newark, N.J., September 2006 - Progression and damage from diabetic retinopathy occur at a high rate in African Americans with type 1 diabetes, according to a study reported in the September 2006 issue of Archives of Ophthalmology. Researchers found that poor blood sugar control and high blood pressure among African American populations studied were two controllable factors contributing to the high rate of eye damage from diabetic eye disease. The New Jersey study evaluated the six-year progression of diabetic retinopathy in 483 African Americans diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. Authors concluded that more effort should be made to make sure regular, dilated eye examinations are conducted among African American populations with type 1 diabetes to help monitor and reduce potential eye damage from diabetic retinopathy. Visit Eye to Eye next week for Part II of Diabetic Eye Disease. If you have any questions or concerns regarding this topic please contact our offices in Stillwater at 405-372-1715 or Pawnee at 918-762-2573. |
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