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Alleviating Knee Pain

Due to an injury I sustained nearly nine years ago, I sometimes experience knee pain. I’m constantly researching new ways to treat my pain. Have you dealt with aggravating knee pain for an extended period of time? Consider visiting an orthopedic doctor near you. This individual can likely diagnose what is causing your discomfort. Depending on your unique situation, your physician might recommend you undergo physical therapy. Your doctor may also prescribe you an anti-inflammatory drug. Changing your diet might also help you feel better. On this blog, I hope you will discover ingenious ways to help you recover from constant knee pain. Enjoy!

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Alleviating Knee Pain

Signs That Diabetes Is Affecting Your Eyesight

by Roberto Morales

If you have diabetes, you likely know that there are many potential side effects. One of the most debilitating is how diabetes can damage your eyesight. Most people with controlled diabetes have few problems with their eyes. People who do have eyesight problems should stay in touch with their optometrist to prevent permanent vision damage. Learn the signs of diabetic-induced eye damage and what you can do to stop it from robbing you of your sight.

What Diabetes Does to Your Eyes

Diabetes affects the walls of your blood vessels making them less effective, and allows them to leak fluid. When this happens to the tiny blood vessels in the retinas of your eyes, your eyesight is affected. In severe cases, you can lose part or all of your sight. This is called diabetic retinopathy and is one of the most dangerous side effects of diabetes.

What Increases Your Risk

Any variations in the following levels from what is acceptable for you puts you at a higher risk of retinopathy:

  • blood sugar levels
  • blood pressure levels

The length of time you've had diabetes and heredity are also factors. Most people with type 1 diabetes and a few with type 2 will develop some form of retinopathy, often without symptoms and only a slight impact on your sight. The severe form of eyesight loss occurs rarely.

What to Look For

Because you may not have symptoms until the damage is severe, regular check-ups with your eye doctor are needed to examine the health of your retina. If you notice any of the following symptoms, get in touch with your doctor immediately:

  • blurred vision or double vision
  • bright flashes in your visual field
  • cloudy vision or streaks of red in your vision
  • floating dark spots or blank spots

These can indicate bleeding into the retina which needs to be stopped quickly to prevent serious and permanent vision loss.

Treatment of Diabetic Retinopathy

Eye surgery is required to treat any vision problems due to your diabetes. It is most effective when you still have normal vision, which is one reason why regular eye exams are important.

One technique uses lasers to stop the tiny blood vessels from leaking in the retina. Another laser technique makes hundreds of tiny burns on the back of the eye to prevent the blood vessels from leaking and the retina from becoming detached. In severe cases, surgery within the eye is required to remove scar tissue and to reattach the retina to restore your vision.

The risk of vision problems in a person with diabetes is high, and while the partial or complete loss of sight is slight, it is possible. Pay attention to your vision and any issues that develop. The sooner you get an optometrist office, such as Optiko Eyewear, after detecting vision problems, the better the chances are that serious problems can be avoided.

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