What is the treatment for diabetic retinopathy?
Answer:
The main form of treatment is called laser photocoagulation.
If it is done early enough, laser treatment has been shown to reduce to risk of severe vision loss by as much as 90%.
Laser treatment is not a cure, but it does aim to save current sight. The laser seals the blood vessels that are leaking fluid into the retina, but if there are new blood vessels growing then more extensive laser treatment may be necessary.
In over 80% of cases, laser treatment causes the new blood vessels to disappear.
The procedure is not painful and is usually carried out on an outpatient basis under local anaesthetic.