Preserve Your Vision With Trinity EyeCare

Diabetic Retinopathy in West Plano

Preserve Your Vision With Trinity EyeCare

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 Trinity EyeCare 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, Trinity EyeCare in West Plano 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 West Plano

Our optometry practice in West Plano

Photograph of Mark  Cutler
Hours
  • Monday 9:00 am - 6:00 pm
  • Tuesday 9:00 am - 6:00 pm
  • Wednesday Closed
  • Thursday 9:00 am - 6:00 pm
  • Friday 8:00 am - 4:00 pm
  • Saturday Closed
  • Sunday Closed
Insurance Plans
  • VSP
  • Medicare
  • United Healthcare
  • Aetna
  • Spectera
  • Anthem
  • EyeMed
  • Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield
  • 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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278 Reviews
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- Sep. 07, 2023
Awesome team. They do a thorough job making sure your prescription is accurate and that any potentia... l issues are kept up with.
- Sep. 04, 2023
Dr. Pang and his staff are AMAZING!! I've trusted them with my vision for over 22 years. They are si... mply the BEST! ⭐️✨️
- Sep. 01, 2023
great communications with both Dr Pang or his staff; all quesitons and concerns answered
- Aug. 19, 2023
Dr. Youngblood and her entire staff are awesome. The best experience with eyecare I have ever had in... my journey.
- Aug. 11, 2023
Dr. Youngblood was very detail-oriented and knowledgeable. She was also patient and kind. I am grate... ful that she was recommended to us. The entire staff was friendly and helpful.
- May. 27, 2023
Exceptional service
- May. 22, 2023
Been coming here for 3 years and will probably keep on coming until Dr. Pang retires. Everyone is in... credibly personable and remembers details about you even if you only come once a year for your annual check up. Before, I was dealing with undiagnosed vertical heterophoria and couldn’t figure out why I was having constant eye strain and migraines. Dr. Pang and his staff were able to take me in and diagnose me quickly. My migraines have improved significantly since. So glad I found Trinity Eye Care. Special shoutout to Aileen, Dr. Pang’s wife, for having the best taste in eyeglasses and making choosing one a breeze. And another shoutout to Kristina, at the front desk, for making sure the clinic and everything runs smoothly.
- May. 21, 2023
I have been with Dr. Pang for over 20 years! I recommend Trinity Eye Care!!
- May. 20, 2023
Very good at what they do. Appointments are very smooth
- Apr. 09, 2023
The service and care I received from Dr Pang and team has been exceptional. He has made the transit... ion of aging easier. The team works well together to provide great quality care.
- Mar. 29, 2023
Great staff and doctors.
- Mar. 15, 2023
Appreciate the quality of care provided by the entire staff at Trinity Eye Care!
- Mar. 07, 2023
Thank you for all your help today! I appreciate your timeliness, patience, and cooperation. I look f... orward to future appointments.
- Feb. 04, 2023
Dr Pang is awesome! He spent the correct amount of time to understand what’s going on with my son�... ��s eyes and gave us a perfect solution. He is really an experienced doctor who you can trust😊 He has all the available technologies in the market. We are very happy with Dr Pang and his facility and would highly recommend him.
- Jan. 30, 2023
Always friendly, helpful staff including Christina at reception and the checkout/optical ordering la... dy (I should know her name by now) my son and I both use Trinity Eye Care and have always been satisfied…substitute Dr. Cutler put me at ease and answered all of my questions.
- Jan. 27, 2023
I have known doctor pang and his wife for many years and they are both very nice and very helpful an... d do a great job in helping all of their customers and patients with their eyes. The facility is always very clean and they are well organized and a super staff is there to also support them.
- Jan. 13, 2023
Very thorough and professional!
- Dec. 11, 2022
Clean environment great doctor and staff.
- Nov. 08, 2022
I was very skeptical at first. I stumbled on the Trinity website during a google search and my sympt... oms matched up with this thing called binocular vision dysfunction. I really did not believe it was a real thing but I went to make an appointment anyway since I could barely function. Right away the staff showed empathy for my situation. The doctor listened to my whole story and took in every word. This is a lost art at most medical practices now. I have had some bad experiences but I was pleasantly surprised when I came here. I was prescribed special prism lenses and again I was skeptical. When they came in they helped a little right away and more and more as the weeks went by. Next thing I know I was driving on my own again. Now I am in vision/physical therapy for my condition. I have made even more progress doing this. Again most places will meet with you for a very brief period and shoe you out the door. Here I have up to two or three people working with me at times. This place truly does care and they are passionate about helping. I have been so disappointed in some of my experiences with doctors the last few years. These folks at Trinity are different. They care about people and legitimately want you to improve. This is how the medical field should be functioning. These guys are the example of how it should be. I have improved so much working with them and I am still improving! I literally got my life back!
- Nov. 04, 2022
Excellent staff and very good Doctors that do an extensive exam with modern equipment. They also fol... low up on their Patient's.

View All 278 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 Trinity EyeCare in West Plano 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