Recent Study Shows Importance of Eye Tests for Diabetes Patients

One of the most serious effects of diabetes is developing retinopathy, a condition where the elevated blood sugar levels cause damage to the small blood vessels in the eyes. It is a condition that can lead to blindness, but since it does not have symptoms early on, it is important for diabetic patients to get an eye exam yearly.

The American Diabetes Association recommends dilated eye exams for diabetes patients at least once a year, but the figures show that in 1998, only 47% did get the exam. The objective is to get this figure up to 75% by 2010.

According to figures from the U.S. Agency for Healthcare Research, minorities have a higher disposition for diabetes than the white population and, in addition, some groups also have a greater risk of diabetes related complications. In some cases the risk can be as high as 50% more than in the total population.

The best cure is prevention and by carefully controlling blood glucose levels and blood pressure, the patients can greatly reduce their risk of developing these eye problems. In the more advanced cases, the use of laser surgery has proven to be successful in preserving vision.
The new study review sheds some light on the most effective ways to get the patients to get their yearly tests.

They reviewed a total of 48 different studies that had more than 160,000 participants from around the World, namely from the United States, Australia, the United Kingdom, Israel, Saudi Arabia and other developed countries.

Twelve of the studies were the one that most consider being the most accurate, namely randomized controlled trials.

In eleven out of the twelve, interventions were able to achieve increases in retinal screening rates when compared to the group that did not get any intervention. The other 36 studies also had positive effects.

They looked at many different ways to promote the eye exams, some focusing on the patients or different populations and some focusing on the health care providers.

The most effective were: