Online Nursing

 Diabetic Retinopathy  Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is a potentially fatal eye condition associated with diabetes. High blood sugar levels can cause damage to blood vessels in the retina, resulting in vision impairment and even blindness. The disorder, which affects several regions of the eye, is considered irreversible.  The number of people worldwide who are blind due to diabetic retinopathy has increased from 0.2 million to 0.4 million. Approximately 35.4% of diabetic patients globally have diabetic retinopathy, with a third of those experiencing sight-threatening DR and 7.6% having macular oedema. Diabetic retinopathy can develop in four stages, starting from mild, moving to moderate, then severe non-proliferative, and finally proliferative diabetic retinopathy. In the initial stage, the retina swells like a balloon (microaneurysm). As it progresses to the moderate stage, there is blockage of the blood vessels supplying the retina. In severe non-proliferative retinopathy, the blockage