Diabetes and DR (Diabetic Retinopathy)

DR (Diabetic retinopathy) is the most important manifestation of diabetic microvascular disease, a specific changes in the fundus lesions, and one of the serious complications of diabetes.

The abnormal insulin metabolism of diabetic patient makes change on eye tissue, nerve and vascular microcirculation, which results damage on eye nutrition and visual function, and manifests as aneurysms, bleeding spots, hard exudation, cotton velvet, vein beaded, abnormal retina Internal microvascular, and macular edema. Most the microvascular disease of diabetic patient has problem in retina and kidney, which is the main reason of blinding, renal failure and death.

DR has high incidence of disease, which is progressive and irreversible. The prevalence of retinopathy is 98% of the patients which have 15 years or longer disease of course, and it is the main cause of blind in diabetic patients. Therefore, early detection, early treatment, and effective monitoring is very important to prevent DR blinding. DR occurs with a variety of factors, chronic hyperglycemia is one of the important factors. Blood glucose control has closed relationship with diabetes complications, especially microvascular disease. At present, hemoglobin (HbA1c) test and the blood glucose control are very necessary to predict and evaluate the progress of DR in diabetic patients. DR has closed relationship with HbA1c, the detection of HbA1c on the DR monitoring and treatment is of great significance.
There is a report, 10% fundus change when HbA1c is 7.3%, HbA1c should be controlled under 7%, only such strict control can reduce or delay the occurrence of chronic complications.

HbA1c is the product of hemoglobin and blood glucose binding in red blood cells, the binding process is slow and irreversible with few influencing factors. The proportion of hemoglobin HbA1c is the average blood glucose level of 1-2 months before testing. HbA1c can be better and more accurately assess the long-term blood glucose metabolism control of diabetic patients, it is more beneficial to the treatment and monitoring of diabetic patients, so HbA1c can be applied to the study of chronic complications of diabetes mellitus.
In 2002, the American Diabetes Association (ADA) has used HbA1c as the gold standard to monitor diabetes mellitus blood glucose control. Active control of blood glucose and reducing HbA1c level are very positive to the prevention and treatment of DR. It is of high clinical significance that monitoring the changes in glycosylated hemoglobin can offer reliable basis to take appropriate measures to reduce the risk of vision loss, and delay the complications of diabetes development.