Preserve Your Vision With Wentzville Eye Center

Diabetic Retinopathy

Preserve Your Vision With Wentzville Eye Center

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 Wentzville Eye Center 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, Wentzville Eye Center in Wentzville 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

Our optometry practice in Wentzville

Photograph of Abby Kilgore
Hours
  • Monday 9:00 am - 5:00 pm
  • Tuesday 9:00 am - 7:00 pm
  • Wednesday 9:00 am - 6:00 pm
  • Thursday 9:00 am - 7:00 pm
  • Friday 9:00 am - 5:00 pm
  • Saturday 8:00 am - 4:00 pm
  • Sunday Closed
Insurance Plans
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  • Medicaid
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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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260 Reviews
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- Feb. 14, 2023
Wonderful experience! They are so professional, yet so much fun! It's nice walking into a business a... nd the employees are smiling and so helpful! They were so nice and made this a great experience for all the of my kiddos! Thank you to both doctors and all of the ladies working in the front!!!
- Jan. 10, 2023
I really liked the way they treated me, they were concerned about me and they gave me many options t... o improve my condition
- Dec. 12, 2022
Great service
- Dec. 07, 2022
Everyone is extremely friendly and helpful! They also squeezed us in with an emergency, which I am e... xtremely grateful for!
- Nov. 04, 2022
I felt good about my exam after this experience and look forward to this team managing my eye health... .
- Oct. 29, 2022
Never had a bad experience. Staff is great. Always helpful and friendly. My last visit they helped m... e pick out the perfect frames.
- Oct. 17, 2022
Easy to schedule, convenient hours, kind staff
- Oct. 12, 2022
Everyone that I talked to was professional. They were all relaxed in a busy environment, and you cou... ld tell their words were generous and kind hearted. They were also very experienced. I went for a depth perception test because I almost failed mine for joining the military, and even though I wasn’t required to do this by the military, they treated it as if I was and made the evaluation even more extensive than the eye exam done at MEPS.
- Sep. 03, 2022
Best customer service you will find! Dr. Kilgore is patient, understanding, and kind. She will keep ... trying until you have the right fit. My whole family has been going there for about 16 years and we are always highly satisfied. Staff is also wonderful and helpful with eye glass and contacts fits and dealing with plan benefits. Highly recommend!
- Aug. 19, 2022
Great visit and examination by friendly and professionals. Caring and kind.
- Aug. 08, 2022
I felt very comfortable with my experience with Wentzville Eye Center. They are competent, provide g... ood service and communication, and did a great job with my eye health exam as well as getting me new lenses with an updated prescription.
- Aug. 04, 2022
I really like Dr. Kilgore, she is friendly and efficient. I'm never having to wait to be seen at th... e time of my appointment. The staff at Wentzville are also super friendly and helpful.
- Jul. 03, 2022
Great experience with hospitable team.
- Jun. 27, 2022
Great doc and staff is great.
- Jun. 20, 2022
Clean facility, good selection of frames, friendly and knowledgeable staff, they have modern equipme... nts for the exam, the Dr was friendly and did a thorough exam. I used to go to Crown Vision and they use the same system so they have my old records which was nice. I would recommend this place.
- Jun. 10, 2022
Very friendly fast and efficient.. had new insurance and they were able to pull it. Technician was s... uper friendly. Made a great experience for my four year old
- May. 28, 2022
Doctor Kilgore and her staff did an amazing job working with me for prescription eyewear. They spen... t time with me answering my questions and working on my specific needs. The end product was exactly what I needed (medium range computer glasses) and I could not be happier. Thank you very much, Dr. Kilgore and team, I will be a return customer.
- Apr. 01, 2022
I would absolutely recommend this office to everyone! From the second I walked in the door each memb... er of the staff were nothing but friendly and professional!
- Feb. 22, 2022
Excellent pricing on frames. Office is a bit small and cramped, but that doesn't change the service ... you get. We are happy we switched to this office.
- Dec. 14, 2021
Fast Return, quality products and great customer service !!!

View All 260 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 Wentzville Eye Center in Wentzville 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