Diabetic retinopathy (damage to the retina’s blood vessels) is the most common eye disease for diabetics. Diabetic retinopathy symptoms may not be visible at first, but in time it can cause a loss of vision, and is a leading cause of blindness. It typically affects both eyes, and is caused by excessive blood sugar that destroys blood vessels in the eye, depriving the retina from getting necessary nutrients. Anyone with diabetes, either type 1 or type 2, may develop diabetic retinopathy. Symptoms of blurred vision can occur in two ways. In some cases, fragile blood vessels will develop on the retina’s surface in an abnormal way, which will then leak into the center of the eye (proliferative retinopathy). In other cases, fluid that has leaked into the macula will cause swelling (macular edema). Either condition will result in blurred vision. Fifty percent of diabetics will experience both.
