November is Diabetic Eye Disease Awareness Month

GREENVILLE, S.C.  November 2, 2010 – November is Diabetic Eye Disease Awareness Month, and Southern Eye Associates is reminding the public that an annual dilated eye exam can help prevent vision loss in people with diabetes.  Diabetes causes more new cases of legal blindness among working-age Americans than any other disease.  Yet, tragically, more than half of all people living with diabetes do not get the recommended annual dilated eye exam.  “Diabetes can have a devastating impact on vision, but the good news is that regular dilated eye exams by an ophthalmologist and timely treatment, if needed, can save vision for the vast majority of diabetics,” said Dr. Jake Bostrom, an ophthalmologist with Southern Eye Associates.

Diabetic retinopathy is a condition in which the blood vessels in the retina become damaged.  The longer you have diabetes,the greater your chance of developing diabetic retinopathy.  There are often no symptoms in the early stages of diabetic retinopathy and your vision may not be affected until the disease worsens.  An effective partnership between you, your primary care physician and your ophthalmologist is necessary to make sure proper eye care and treatment is provided.  The current treatment option or diabetic retinopathy is laser photocoagulation. Dr. Jake Bostrom uses a special laser to make tiny burns on the retinal surface to treat neovascularization and macular edema, 2 of the primary causes of vision loss in diabetic retinopathy.  “When performed promptly, laser photocoagulation helps reduce the risk of severe vision loss by up to 90 percent,” said Dr. Bostrom.

Southern Eye Associates is an ophthalmology practice with offices in Greer and Greenville providing comprehensive family eye care – from routine eye exams to medical treatments and surgical procedures for complex eye conditions.