Jan 14, 2014 – Treating Diabetic Eye Disease

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ANCHOR LEAD: EYE DISEASE THAT DEVELOPS AS A RESULT OF DIABETES CAN BE SUCCESSFULLY TREATED, ELIZABETH TRACEY REPORTS

Diabetic macular edema is a swelling in the back part of the eye that often develops in those with diabetes, even when they’re well-controlled with regard to blood sugar. Neil Bressler, author of a recent study on just how common this condition is and a retina expert at Johns Hopkins, says the good news is there’s effective treatment.

BRESSLER: Recently there have been major breakthroughs in treating diabetic macular edema, or this swelling in the back part of the eye. Injecting medication into the middle cavity of the eye can stop vision impairment in over 90% of people that have this. This was far superior to our previous treatment for the past 25 years which was to apply laser to the back part of the eye. It’s a very common problem but we have a lot of work to do because about half of the people with this condition in the United States are not getting access to the appropriate eye care. :33

So if you have diabetes make sure your eyes are carefully examined. At Johns Hopkins, I’m Elizabeth Tracey.