Monitor Diabetic Retinopathy after Weight Loss Surgery

What does weight loss surgery have to do with diabetic retinopathy? As it turns out if you have diabetes and diabetic retinopathy, even if you have successful weight loss surgery and normal blood glucose-you still need regular eye exams to monitor the progression or stability of diabetic retinopathy.

Researchers reporting at the  American Diabetes Association found weight-loss surgery might accelerate progression of diabetic retinopathy in some cases. In the study, 7 of the 40 or 17.5% of the diabetes patients screened about a year before and again after bariatric surgery suffered a progression of their diabetic retinopathy as compared with the 2% to 4% of the overall diabetes patients who develop retinopathy each year. The opposite effect might have been expected. If you have a condition such as diabetic retinopathy that is the result of the diabetes and the diabetes is in remission, it makes intuitive sense that the progression of the condition would be arrested. Although a few patients did appear to have regression of their eye disease most remained unchanged after surgery in the study.

The patients who did progress had higher pre-surgical glucose levels and the greatest reduction in glucose levels afterward. A rapid reduction in blood glucose after the weight loss surgery-which is called “normoglycemic re-entry” or a temporary anemic episode after the weight loss surgery may actually be responsible for in the progression of preexisting diabetic retinopathy, but the mechanism is really unclear and requires a great deal of further investigation.

One fact for sure-even if after weight loss surgery your blood glucose is normal, people with moderate background diabetic retinopathy prior to weight loss surgery should be monitored closely post-surgery for evidence of progression.

If you or someone you know is having weight loss surgery and is diabetic and has diabetic retinopathy, please call Doctor & Associates-203-227-4113, visit Doctor & Associates in Fairfield County or facebook.com/doctorandassociates to schedule an appointment for regular eye exams to monitor any progression of diabetic retinopathy.

Doctor & Associates is a leading Fairfield County Connecticut eye care practice with offices at 129 Kings Highway North, Westport, Connecticut 06880, 195 Danbury Road, Wilton, Connecticut 06897 and 148 East Avenue, Norwalk, Connecticut 06851.

Diabetic Retinopathy & Risk of Cardiovascular Events

Fairfield CountyOphthalmologist Claudia Castiblanco, M.D. alerted patients with diabetes and diabetic retinopathy about their increased risk of cardiovascular disease and cardiovascular events. “We know very well that diabetes causes significant blood vessel disease throughout a person’s body. Very important for to advise patients about is the close association between the presence and severity of diabetic retinopathy and future cardiovascular (CV) events such as heart attack or stroke,” stated Dr. Castiblanco.

The relationship between diabetic retinopathy, its 4-year progression, and CV outcomes including CV death or nonfatal myocardial infarction or stroke was analyzed in participants in the Action to Control Cardiovascular Risk in Diabetes (ACCORD) trial who also participated in the ACCORD Eye Study. The diabetic retinopathy was classified as either none, mild, moderate, or severe and whether it was worsening was also graded. The hazard of CV death or nonfatal myocardial infarction or stroke increased by 38% for every category of change in retinopathy severity and steps of progression further raised the hazard. Thus the researchers believe that both the severity of retinopathy and its progression are determinants of predisposition to CV outcomes. “The health of the retina may provide us with an anatomical index of the effect of metabolic and blood vessel factors on future CV outcomes and events,” summarized Dr. Castiblanco.

If you or someone you know has questions or concerns about diabetes, diabetic eye problems, diabeticretinopathy and the risk of cardiovascular events such as heart attack or stroke please call Doctor & Associates-203-227-4113, visit Doctor & Associates in Fairfield County or facebook.com/doctorandassociates to schedule an appointment.

Doctor & Associates is a leading Fairfield County Connecticut eye care practice with offices at 129 Kings Highway North, Westport, Connecticut 06880, 195 Danbury Road, Wilton, Connecticut 06897 and 148 East Avenue, Norwalk, Connecticut 06851.

Information about Diabetes, Eye Disease & Problems

Doctor & Associates provided information about diabetes, eye disease, diabetic retinopathy and eye problems as Prevent Blindness America designates November as National Diabetic Eye Disease Awareness Month.

Diabetic Population & Eye Problems Growing

There are more than 25 million people in the U.S. who have diabetes and this number is rapidly growing-in an almost epidemic proportion. Diabetes is the leading cause of new cases of blindness in adults 20-74 years of age with some 8 million people ages 40 and older who have diabetic retinopathy.

You Can Prevent Vision Loss from Diabetes

Although there is no cure for diabetic eye disease, annual eye exams for diabetes patients are essential to help slow the progression of diabetic retinopathy and diabetic eye disease. The potential vision loss from diabetic retinopathy can be prevented if it's caught early and treated in time. More than one third of those diagnosed with diabetes do not adhere to vision care guidelines recommending a dilated eye exam every year. As part of Diabetic Eye Disease Awareness Month we are urging people with diabetes to have a dilated eye exam every year. The longer a person has diabetes, the greater his or her risk for developing diabetic retinopathy. However, diabetic retinopathy does not only affect people who have had diabetes for many years, it can also appear within the first year or two after the onset of the disease.

In addition to having regular eye examinations and testing at the direction of your eye doctor, patients can help to reduce the risk of developing diabetic eye disease  by not smoking, controlling their cholesterol and lipid profile and blood pressure, as well as working to eat a heart-healthy diet rich in fish, fruit and green leafy vegetables and exercising. 

If you or someone you know has diabetes or even elevated blood sugar levels they should work to prevent diabetic eye disease and problems with regular eye exams by calling Doctor & Associates-203-227-4113, visit Doctor & Associates in Fairfield County or facebook.com/doctorandassociates to schedule an appointment.

Doctor & Associates is a leading Fairfield County Connecticut eye care practice with offices at 129 Kings Highway North, Westport, Connecticut 06880, 195 Danbury Road, Wilton, Connecticut 06897 and 148 East Avenue, Norwalk, Connecticut 06851.