Diabetes is a prominent disease that affects nearly 34.2 million Americans. The disease can lead to a variety of health complications, some of which can impact your heart, teeth, and even your eyes.
If you have diabetes, make sure your eyes are getting the protection they deserve and request an eye exam today!
Diabetes is a systemic condition that occurs when your body is producing too much sugar (glucose) and not enough insulin. When this happens, the sugar in your blood can impact aspects of your health, raising your risk for developing a range of conditions and diseases.
To help manage the effect diabetes has on your vision, most optometrists recommend having annual eye exams. However, your optometrist may recommend more frequent exams depending on your health.
Some of the most common eye problems patients face when they have diabetes include:
Diabetic retinopathy is one of the most common eye diseases connected to diabetes.
Diabetic retinopathy occurs when the sugar in your bloodstream damages or blocks blood vessels in your retina. Because your retina needs the oxygen from your blood, it compensates by developing new vessels to keep the blood moving.
However, these new blood vessels are very delicate and can break easily. When this happens, the vessel then leaks blood and other fluids into your eye and retina, leading to possible vision loss.
Diabetic macular edema (DME) occurs when fluid leaks underneath your macula, which is the part of your retina responsible for central vision. When this happens, it deteriorates the macula and damages your central vision.
Open-angle glaucoma is one of the most common eye diseases around the world, but your chances of developing it can double when you have diabetes.
Open-angle glaucoma can occur when your eye is producing too much intraocular fluid or not draining the fluid fast enough. While the drainage angle remains open, your eye is still building up intraocular pressure (IOP) and damaging your optic nerve, leading to permanent vision loss.
Diabetes can increase your chances of developing cataracts.
Cataracts are a common eye condition that develops when your clear crystalline lens becomes denser and more opaque over time. This creates to a cloudy or milky appearance that could impair your vision.
We use some of the latest technology to help detect problems with your eyes that could be connected to or caused by diabetes. Some of the tools we use include:
Optos retinal imaging is a tool we use to capture ultra-wide images of your retina. This technology helps us detect issues connected to your retinal health, including diabetic retinopathy and glaucoma.
Fundus photography is a technique used to capture highly-detailed colored images of your eye’s fundus, which includes your retina, macula, and optic disc. By observing this area, we can detect diabetic retinopathy, diabetic macular edema, glaucoma, and more.
You can take steps to protect your vision from complications related to diabetes by requesting your eye exam today!
You can find us in Portola Plaza, right next door to Verizon Wireless. We offer plenty of free parking just outside our front door. Visit us today!
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Love coming to this optometric office and highly recommend! Dr. Lau is wonderful – so caring and nice, and also very professional and is an expert optometrist! Her staff is also so great and thorough- working with Wilson, Sandy, and the team is always pleasant, professional and super organized. Really enjoy having great contacts, trendy cute eyeglasses with the newest vision technology, and healthy eyes from a great team. Thanks for being awesome!!
Dr. Lau was very professional without wasting time. She was quick but incredibly informative. She made me feel comfortable and explained things in detail that I could understand as a patient. Her staff who helped me pick out my frames were also fantastic. I’m usually very closed minded about people helping me pick out any item, but they made me feel comfortable and were patient even though I was picky. Would highly recommend. They even laid out to a tee what my insurance covered and the prices without, which I greatly appreciated. They have been so helpful, hope they can help you too!
Very professional and helpful staff. Never have any issues, and they make recommendations to help maximize my insurance benefits. Highly recommend.
Mission Viejo Optometric Center
North Tustin Ave Optometric Center
La Paz Optometric Center
