What Are The Symptoms Of Diabetic Retinopathy

Retinopathy is a disease of the eye that is caused when the blood vessels of the retina (the light-sensitive tissue at the back of the eye) are damaged. This issue can easily develop in patients with type 1 or type 2 diabetes. There are two types of retinopathy – Non-Proliferative Diabetic Retinopathy (NPDR) and Proliferative Diabetic Retinopathy (PDR). If diabetic retinopathy is not treated on time, it can cause blurred vision, vision loss, or even permanent blindness.

To ensure the safety of your vision, you need to be aware of its symptoms. The main symptoms of retinopathy are:

• Blurred vision: The lack of sharpness in the vision that stops you to see the details of the object can be a symptom of retinopathy.
• Trouble reading or spotting faraway objects: Retinopathy also causes strain on your eye as it disables you to read small font or locate any faraway object.
• Colour blindness or seeing faded colours: Colour blindness could be genetic but if you are finding it difficult to identify some colours that you used to see properly then it can be possible that retinopathy has caused you colourblindness.
• Dark or empty areas in your vision: Dark spots in your vision can be a symptom of retinopathy. These spots are also known as blind spots.
• Eye floaters: You can see dark or grey specks, strings, or cobwebs that seem like a shadow moving across your vision.
• Vision loss: One of the worst outcomes of being a patient of retinopathy is that you can have vision loss.

If you have any of these symptoms then it is advised that you get in touch with an eye doctor. There are different ways to check if these symptoms are of retinopathy or not, such as testing your visual acuity, eye muscle function, pupil response, peripheral vision, signs of glaucoma by putting intraocular pressure. In these diagnoses, the doctor looks for retina swelling, bleeding in the eye, growth of new blood vessels, or abnormal blood vessels.