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Data from the Ohio Department of Health states that in 2016, nearly 1 million (11.1 percent) Ohio adults had been diagnosed with diabetes. In addition, nearly 800,000 adults in Ohio had been diagnosed with prediabetes, and it is estimated that more than 1 million Ohio adults have prediabetes but have not been diagnosed, increasing their risk of progressing to type 2 diabetes later in life.Becausethe longer someone has diabetes, the higher risk they face for developing vision issues, and health disparities continue to affect minority populations, the Ohio Affiliate of Prevent Blindness has declared November as Diabetes-related Eye Disease Month. Educational resources include downloadable factsheets, training modules, social media graphics and more. Materials are available in English and Spanish.

Diabetes-related eye disease refers to eye problems that people with diabetes may face as a complication of the disease.Diabetes-related retinopathy(DR) is a disease that damages the blood vessels of the eye, causing them to leak and bleed into the retina.

Individuals may not experience symptoms in the early stages of DR, which is why it is important for individuals with diabetes to have an eye exam annually, or as directed by their doctor.

If diabetes-related retinopathy is left untreated, fluid can leak into the center of the macula, called the fovea, the part of the eye where sharp, straight-ahead vision occurs. The fluid makes the macula swell, blurring vision. This condition is calleddiabetes-related macular edema.It can occur at any stage of diabetic retinopathy, although it is more likely to occur as the disease progresses.

Other eye conditions common among people living with diabetes include:

Cataract, a clouding of the lens in the eye, which can cause vision to become blurry and colors to become dull. Aside from aging, diabetes is the most common risk factor for cataract.

Glaucoma occurs with damage to the optic nerve and possible loss of side vision, usually caused by an increase in fluid pressure inside the eye.

According to theNational Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases,finding and treating diabetic retinopathy early can reduce the risk of blindness by 95 percent."Nearly 300,000 Ohioans have diabetes-related eye disease," said Sherry Williams, President & CEO of the Ohio Affiliate of Prevent Blindness. Education, advocacy and access to care are key to helping to prevent vision loss from diabetes.By working together to increase early detection, consistent monitoring, and treatment, we can help to avoid significant vision loss, including blindness, across Ohio and the country.The Center for Vision and Population Health at Prevent Blindness offers the Seeing the Way to Better Health: Diabetes and Vision Healthissue brief.The goal of the brief is to encourage diabetes health programs to integrate vision into their outreach and programs. It includes stories from peer programs, resources and infographics for program use. The brief was developed in partnership with theNational Association of Chronic Disease Directors.TheDiabetes & the Eyes Educational Toolkitfrom Prevent Blindness offers free educational materials on diabetes and the impact of diabetes on eye health in English and Spanish. These educational resources are intended for healthcare professionals, community health educators, diabetes educators and anyone in a caregiving or diabetes education role. The development of the toolkit was made possible by funding from the Allergan Foundation.

For those who have vision loss from diabetes, Prevent Blindness offers the freeLiving Well with Low Visiononline resource. The site includes the Low Vision: A Self-Help Guide, the Caring for the Visually Impaired guide, and a variety of self-help tools and resource links at:http://lowvision.preventblindness.org/.For more information on diabetes-related eye disease, please visithttps://preventblindness.org/diabetes-and-your-eyes/or call Prevent Blindness at 800-301-2020. For a free listing of organizations and services that provide financial assistance for vision care in English or Spanish, please visithttps://preventblindness.org/vision-care-financial-assistance-information/.

About Prevent Blindness, Ohio Affiliate:

Founded in 1908, Prevent Blindness is the nation's leading volunteer eye health and safety organization dedicated to fighting blindness and saving sight. The Ohio Affiliate of Prevent Blindness serves all 88 Ohio counties, providing direct services to more than 1,000,000 Ohioans annually and educating millions of consumers about what they can do to protect and preserve their precious gift of sight. For more information or to contribute, call 800-301-2020.Visit Prevent Blindness on the web atpbohio.org, Facebook atfacebook.com/pbohio/ or Twitter attwitter.com/PB_Ohio.

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Prevent Blindness declares November as Diabetes-Related Eye Disease Month to educate on leading cause of new cases of blindness in adults - The...

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