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Early retinopathy - a bit upset

Billy Ruffian

Billy Ruffian

Well-Known Member
Messages
54
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
The results of my eye-screening came today. Apparently I have the beginning of retinopathy. I though i was controlling things quite well with diet and exercise but it seems not. Should I be as upset as I feel?
 
I had retinopathy fir 3 consecutive screening tests and then I was so surprised as I though once you had it you always have it. I e had no signs of it for the past 3 screenings.
 
What do you mean by "the beginning of retinopathy"?
I have, in the past, been diagnosed with "background retinopathy". Is this the same thing?
Background retinopathy can be reversed through good BG control.

Furthermore, I have been told that retinopathy is diagnosed through manual checking of retinal scans. What someone may think of as a tiny retinal bleed may be considered to be a blip on a photo by someone else - it quite subjective.

Whatever it is (or isn't), I believe the best thing to do is maintain good BG control and look after yourself.
 
Ive been having eye screens for over 20 yearss - all bar the first one I ever had have come back as either clear or early signs of background retinopathy, requiring no action & they oscillate between the two. It seems that good sugar control can keep eye damage at bay and stave off Proliferative retinopathy which is the stage where small bleeds in the eye have led to the production of new (and relatively weak) capillaries that can rupture leading to further small bleeds and may need laser treatment to try and stop. Big bleeds are the most coomon cause of blindness as a diabetic complication
As I see it, signs of early changes on a scan report are just a reminder to keep sugars and blood pressure under good control
 
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Same here. 'Background retinopathy, come back in 12 months'. Another great reason to keep testing and trying your utmost to keep those bg levels at your best.
 
i was diagnosed with background retinopathy too seventeen years ago, and i have never needed any further treatment. i was recently diagnosed with maculopathy in one eye and I'm very upset about this, so i understand what its like to get unexpectedly bad news, but i am hoping if I can get a few more years before i need any treatment. try not to worry, you could have another 17 years + before it progresses or even longer if u put the effort in with bloods . T1 33 years.
 
Goacher55 said:
I had retinopathy fir 3 consecutive screening tests and then I was so surprised as I though once you had it you always have it. I e had no signs of it for the past 3 screenings.
Click to expand...
Thank you - that's good to hear. Maybe there's hope for me yet!
 
helensaramay said:
What do you mean by "the beginning of retinopathy"?
I have, in the past, been diagnosed with "background retinopathy". Is this the same thing?
Background retinopathy can be reversed through good BG control.

Furthermore, I have been told that retinopathy is diagnosed through manual checking of retinal scans. What someone may think of as a tiny retinal bleed may be considered to be a blip on a photo by someone else - it quite subjective.

Whatever it is (or isn't), I believe the best thing to do is maintain good BG control and look after yourself.
Click to expand...

Thank you. The letter does indeed say 'background retinopathy'. I confess to misreading it until just now. Thanks also for the information that it's reversible!
 
Boo1979 said:
Ive been having eye screens for over 20 yearss - all bar the first one I ever had have come back as either clear or early signs of background retinopathy, requiring no action & they oscillate between the two. It seems that good sugar control can keep eye damage at bay and stave off Proliferative retinopathy which is the stage where small bleeds in the eye have led to the production of new (and relatively weak) capillaries that can rupture leading to further small bleeds and may need laser treatment to try and stop. Big bleeds are the most coomon cause of blindness as a diabetic complication
As I see it, signs of early changes on a scan report are just a reminder to keep sugars and blood pressure under good control
Click to expand...

Thanks for the information and encouragement!
 
Grateful said:
I had never heard of background retinopathy until I saw this thread, which shows just how little I know. It is great that @Billy Ruffian got input from the experiences of others with this condition.

For those who might want more information diabetes.co.uk has this useful explanation: http://www.diabetes.co.uk/diabetes-complications/background-retinopathy.html.
Click to expand...
There is a better explanation here:- http://www.diabeticretinopathy.org.uk/back_diabetic_retinopathy.html
 
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