Preserve Your Vision With Memorial Eye Center of Pearland

Diabetic Retinopathy in Pearland

Preserve Your Vision With Memorial Eye Center of Pearland

Schedule Eye Exam

Have diabetes?

Experiencing changes in vision, such as blurriness and eye floaters?

Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is one of the leading causes of vision loss around the world. Of an estimated 285 million people with diabetes mellitus worldwide, approximately one-third have signs of diabetic retinopathy.

Fortunately, there are several steps people with diabetes can take to prevent or minimize vision loss.

Blood sugar level check


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What Is Diabetic Retinopathy?

noraml eye and an eye with diabetic retinopathy

Diabetic retinopathy is an eye disease caused by high blood sugar levels that damage the small blood vessels clustered within your retina. This leads to swelling or fluid leakage and can result in vision loss and even blindness.

Diabetic retinopathy also raises the risk of retinal detachment and/or glaucoma.

Because the early stages of diabetic retinopathy show no symptoms, many don't realize they have it until the disease has progressed.

If you have diabetes, you are at risk of developing diabetic retinopathy. To reduce your risk and protect your vision, schedule an eye exam with Memorial Eye Center of Pearland today.


What Are the Symptoms of Diabetic Retinopathy?

diabetic-retinopothy-oct-scan

As mentioned above, the early phase of diabetic retinopathy typically shows no symptoms. This is why it's important to have routine eye exams (all the more so if you have diabetes), as your eye doctor can detect diabetic retinopathy in its earlier stages before symptoms become apparent.

Symptoms of proliferative diabetic retinopathy include:
  • Blurred vision
  • Floaters
  • Double vision
  • Near vision problems
  • Seeing dark spots (scotomas)
  • Difficulty seeing at night

What are the Stages of Diabetic Retinopathy?

Non-Proliferative Retinopathy (early stage):
This occurs when small bulges–or microaneurysms–form in blood vessels and can leak fluid into the retina.

Proliferative Retinopathy (later phase):
This refers to abnormal vessel growth and leakage in the retina. This triggers a variety of vision problems such as blurriness, reduced field of vision, and even blindness.

If you have diabetes, Memorial Eye Center of Pearland in Pearland offers diagnostic tests and treatment options to help preserve your vision. The earlier the diagnosis, the better the treatment outcome.

Diabetic-Retinopathy-Bllod-sugar-level-checker


How Optometrists Diagnose Diabetic Retinopathy

  • Medical history

    Your optometrist will ask about your medical history, including diabetes, as well as your family history of eye conditions.

  • Dilated pupil exam

    Your optometrist will apply eye drops to dilate the pupils so they can see inside the eye and detect any issues.

  • Fluorescein angiography

    This eye test uses a special dye and camera to look at blood flow in the retina and choroid.

  • Optical coherence tomography

    This imaging method shows a cross-section of the retina and can indicate whether vessels are leaking fluid into the retina.


Diabetic Retinopathy Diagnosis & Treatment in Pearland

Our optometry practice in Pearland

Photograph of Monica Jones
Hours
  • Monday 9:00 am - 6:00 pm
  • Tuesday 10:00 am - 7:00 pm
  • Wednesday 9:00 am - 6:00 pm
  • Thursday 10:00 am - 7:00 pm
  • Friday 9:00 am - 6:00 pm
  • Saturday 9:00 am - 3:00 pm
  • Sunday Closed
Insurance Plans
  • VSP
  • Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield
  • United Healthcare
  • Medicare
  • Aetna
  • Spectera
  • Blue Cross
  • Medicaid
  • MetLife

How to Treat Diabetic Retinopathy

senior man with diabetic retinopathy

Treatment begins with managing blood sugar levels and diabetes. This means eating a healthy diet, increasing physical activity, and taking whatever diabetes medication has been prescribed.

Other treatments will depend on the stage or severity of the disease. If caught early, only blood sugar management may be necessary.

However, if you're in a more advanced stage of the diseases, treatment options may include:
  • Eye medications. Steroid and Anti-VEGF treatments can stop inflammation and prevent the formation of new blood vessels.
  • Laser surgery. Reduces the proliferation of abnormal blood vessels and swelling in the retina.
  • Vitrectomy. If you have proliferative diabetic retinopathy, you may need an eye surgery called vitrectomy. This procedure removes scar tissue, blood or fluid, and some of the vitreous gel so light rays can better focus on the retina.
Patient Reviews
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219 Reviews
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- Aug. 31, 2023
Extremely friendly, helpful, courteous and lovely staff. Dr. Dao is one of the most compassionate do... ctors that I have ever come across. Thank you for your kindness!!🙏🤗💖
- Aug. 29, 2023
I highly recommend
- Aug. 28, 2023
Dr Jones and Dr Dao are awesome. Very friendly staff.
- Aug. 16, 2023
Thank you for your great customer service. My daughter and I love the way you all took care of us.
- Aug. 11, 2023
The eye doctors and staff are very knowledgeable and helpful. Highly recommend!!
- Aug. 01, 2023
Great service. They are pro entrepreneurs (no insurance) and will give you honest pricing so you can... budget your work.
- Jul. 27, 2023
Amazing staff & Doctors.. Carmen is the best she always helps on anything you need. She is phenomena... l at helping you pick out glasses.
- Jul. 08, 2023
My first time visiting this location. I had a great experience. The whole staff was friendly and att... entive. Dr. explained the everything. Definitely recommend for your exams & eye wear needs.
- Jul. 03, 2023
Dr. Dao and her staff are friendly, knowledgeable, patient and made my son feel comfortable. This wi... ll be the place I bring my family for all future eye exams. Thank you for a great experience!
- Jun. 30, 2023
Knowledgeable and helpful.
- Jun. 10, 2023
My wife begin this trend! Now the entire family are taken care of here! Dr. Dao and Carmen have been... in our eyecare corner for over a decade. We appreciate the service and care we get here! Always goes the extra mile. Thank you all!
- May. 28, 2023
excellent eye care professionals
- May. 16, 2023
Memorial Eye Center is fantastic. The facility is beautiful, and the staff is kind. My 8 year old sa... w Dr. Dao and loved her. Dr. Dao took her time and paid great attention to my daughter's exam. She was thorough and had a great "bedside" manner. I highly recommend Dr. Dao and Memorial Eye Center.
- May. 01, 2023
Such kind doctors. I was treated there for a swollen eye. Everyone was so kind and friendly. My husb... and got his routine eye exam there too and also had a good experience.
- Feb. 25, 2023
Great staff, friendly, awesome facility and location
- Feb. 20, 2023
100% recommended, been here for regular eye exams and eyes pain. Staffs and the doctors are very car... ing and helpful.
- Feb. 08, 2023
Today was my first time visiting the pearland office and I’ll say it will be my permanent location... . From the time I was brought back(I can’t remember her name but she had really cute bedazzled shoes lol..very sweet person ) to actually seeing the doctor. I had the pleasure of meeting Dr. Madelyn Nguyen. I felt so comfortable like I was talking with an old friend. She was very thorough in explaining everything to me and kept me involved throughout the process. I also worked with Anna to help me pick out and price my glasses.(she helped me narrow down my choices) She was great as well! The front desk was amazing. I wish I remembered names but one has beautiful red hair and the other blonde hair with glasses. Y’all helped me so much even though I forgot some details. I absolutely recommend.
- Jan. 31, 2023
Staff was very helpful and friendly.
- Jan. 24, 2023
Very welcoming and all the staff was very pleasant and helpful. The doctor was so informative wit... h everything she done in the visit,
- Jan. 23, 2023
The best Eye Team in town. The entire staff has been a pleasure to work with. They are kind and welc... oming.

View All 219 Reviews

Diabetic Retinopathy FAQs

What are the major risk factors for diabetic retinopathy?

As the name suggests, diabetes is the main risk factor for developing diabetic retinopathy. Be mindful of your family history of type 1, type 2 and gestational diabetes. If you have been diagnosed with diabetes, get an annual eye exam to detect potential problems early.

Other conditions such as high blood pressure and high cholesterol are also risk factors. Moreover, those of African or Hispanic descent have a higher risk of developing diabetic retinopathy.

Can diabetic retinopathy be prevented?

There are a number of ways to preserve your vision and reduce the risk of vision and eye damage due to diabetic retinopathy.

  • Visit your eye doctor for annual eye exams.
  • Control your blood sugar levels.
  • Maintain healthy cholesterol levels and blood pressure.
  • Exercise regularly.
  • Quit smoking.

The best thing you can do right now is to schedule your eye exam with Memorial Eye Center of Pearland in Pearland to ensure that everything is in check.

Does diabetic retinopathy cause blindness?

Diabetic retinopathy is one of the main causes of blindness among work-aged adults. It affects one in three people with diabetes and often goes unnoticed at first. Diagnosing and treating the condition early on can prevent severe vision loss.


blood sugaer level testing kit

Have diabetes?

Early detection and timely treatment can prevent vision loss.

Schedule Eye Exam