Diabetic retinopathy is fast becoming the primary cause of vision impairment in India, with the disease often remaining undetected until vision deterioration has occurred, health specialists said on Saturday, ahead of World Retina Day.
World Retina Day is observed each year on the last Sunday of September to increase awareness about retinal health.
With India being the diabetes capital of the world, diabetic retinopathy is surfacing as a major public health concern in the nation. Therefore, early identification is vital, the specialists noted.
“Diabetes is already an epidemic in India, and diabetic retinopathy is quickly emerging as a public health issue. It is becoming one of the main causes of visual impairment in the country,” Dr. Praveen Vashist, Professor and Officer In-charge, Community Ophthalmology, RP Centre, AIIMS, New Delhi, told IANS.
“Diabetic retinopathy is among the most frequent and severe complications affecting diabetic patients, yet it often goes unnoticed until vision loss occurs,” added Dr. Vishali Gupta, Vice President, VRSI & Head – Retina, PGIMS.
According to the National Blindness and Visual Impairment Survey, 2019, carried out by RP Centre, AIIMS, nearly 12 per cent of people aged 50 years and above had diabetes.
Among them, roughly 17 per cent had diabetic retinopathy. Alarmingly, only about 10 per cent of individuals with diabetes had ever undergone a retinal screening for diabetic retinopathy, highlighting a major shortfall in early detection and preventive care.
Gupta told IANS that simply put, prolonged elevated blood sugar harms the tiny blood vessels in the retina — the light-sensitive layer at the back of the eye, resulting in diabetic retinopathy.
The worrying aspect of the condition is that it can advance quietly without clear symptoms in its initial phases.
“Over time, these weakened vessels may leak fluid or bleed, causing swelling, scarring, and even abnormal new vessel formation, all of which lead to a condition called Diabetic macular edema (DME), which can jeopardise vision,” the expert said.
Traditionally, laser treatment and anti-VEGF injections have been the cornerstone for DME. But now, several advancements in DME therapy are improving the prognosis for patients.
These include bispecific antibodies, which provide promise by targeting multiple disease mechanisms at once, helping to reduce inflammation, control abnormal vessel proliferation, and maintain vision for longer periods with fewer treatments.
“These breakthroughs are particularly crucial in a country like India, where the diabetes load is escalating rapidly,” Gupta said, while emphasising the importance of early detection to achieve better results.
“Delayed screening and diagnosis mean that patients frequently present when substantial and sometimes irreversible damage has already occurred. In the advanced stage, the disease not only limits treatment effectiveness, but can also result in complete blindness, affecting a person’s independence, quality of life, and productivity,” Gupta added.
The experts recommended regular eye examinations as a standard component of diabetes management.
“Public awareness and organised screening programmes for diabetic retinopathy must be urgently expanded nationwide. A realistic aim would be to reach at least 80 per cent screening coverage among people with diabetes by 2030. Such a strategy is crucial to lessen the burden of preventable blindness and ensure timely care for those at risk,” Vashist told IANS.
