Diabetic retinopathy

Diabetic retinopathy is a chronic, progressive disease resulting from hyperglycemia-induced vascular and neurodegenerative changes in the retina.

The duration and control of diabetes, as well as systemic comorbidities, influences disease severity and progression.

Diagnosis is clinical, typically made through dilated fundus exam, optical coherence tomography, and fluorescein angiography.

Sight-threatening features include diabetic macular edema, retinal ischemia, neovascularization of the retina or optic disc, neovascular glaucoma, vitreous hemorrhage, and tractional retinal detachment.

Treatment of vision-threatening disease includes intravitreal vascular endothelial growth factor inhibitor injections, panretinal photocoagulation, macular laser therapy, and pars plana vitrectomy for advanced complications.

Diabetic retinopathy is the chronic progressive retinal manifestation of hyperglycemic vascular damage and neurodegenerative changes. Its prevalence increases with the duration of diabetes. There are two stages: nonproliferative and proliferative. Nonproliferative diabetic retinopathy is the early stage of the disease, characterized by the absence of abnormal new blood vessels, and may cause moderate visual loss. In proliferative diabetic retinopathy, abnormal new blood vessels are present and visual loss may be severe.