Treatments
Furthermore, existing risk factors for vascular damage, such as high blood pressure and cholesterol levels, should be controlled as optimally as possible.
- Ophthalmologic treatment depends on the stage of the disease.
- If macular edema is present, a drug known as a VEGF inhibitor is injected into the inside of the eye.
- Advanced diabetic retinopathy with vascularization is treated by laser. Areas of the retina that are already diseased are treated and “switched off”. By eliminating the diseased tissue, the need for oxygen is reduced and the healthy areas of the retina can be better supplied with oxygen and less VEGF inhibitor is produced, thus preventing the formation of new vessels.
