A new $3.3 million study from the University of Houston will be focused on finding ways to prevent blindness in diabetic and prediabetic patients.
Diabetic retinopathy affects blood vessels in the retina, according to the National Eye Institute, and can lead to diabetic macular edema (DME), which is the most common cause of vision loss among diabetic patients according to the National Institutes of Health. DME happens when blood vessels leak fluid into a part of the retina that's needed for sharp vision.
Dr. Wendy Harrison is the lead researcher for the UH study, which is funded by the National Eye Institute. She said the study will be looking at both the front and back of the eye and focus more on prediabetic patients to find early signs of vision loss.
"We don't really know anything about prediabetes in the eye, so we're hopeful that by learning more about patients with prediabetes, we'll be able to keep eyes healthier," she said.
Harrison said diabetes is the leading cause of vision loss in working-age Americans. According to the American Diabetes Association, 37 million Americans have diabetes, including over 2.7 million Texans. Still, Harrison said there's currently no treatment for blindness caused by diabetic retinopathy.
"Our best move as eye doctors is to either prevent it from happening, so get people to control their blood sugar sooner, or do a better job of it, or at least get it to progress more slowly," she said.
Patients who have diabetes are still recommended to have an eye exam every year because diabetic retinopathy might not have any symptoms at first, Harrison added.
"The early signs of diabetic retinopathy are visible during an eye exam, but don't necessarily affect how well you see," she said.
The study will take two years to complete. Patients will go through a baseline visit and two follow-ups at 12 months and 24 months. Diabetic and prediabetic patients who are interested in participating can reach out to Dr. Harrison via email or her research lab by phone at 713-743-1484.
"We are just getting ready to start seeing the first subject," Harrison said. "... we had a lot of preliminary data that went into the grant. That tells me that hopefully, we'll be successful in being able to follow these changes over time."