Diabetic Eye Exams in Walnut Creek & Antioch

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Keep Your Eyes Healthy

If you’re someone with diabetes, you’re likely familiar with your increased risk of diabetic eye disease. Over time, diabetes can cause damage to your eyes that can affect your vision and overall health. Having your optometrist evaluate your eyes regularly can ensure any early signs of eye disease are spotted before they cause permanent damage.

At Diablo Valley Optometric Group, protecting your vision and ocular health is our top priority. We want to give you all the information you need about diabetes to subsequently keep your eyes healthy.

In some cases, your optometrist may be able to detect signs of diabetes before an official diagnosis. Diabetes affects the blood vessels, and your eye is the only place in the body where a doctor can see them directly.

When you have your eyes examined regularly, your optometrist can monitor any changes in your ocular health, including early signs of diabetes. Book your annual appointment today!

How Can Diabetes Affect My Eyes?

Diabetes is a metabolic disease that affects how the body produces and regulates insulin use, which in turn controls blood sugar levels. Insulin moves sugar from the blood into the cells, which can be used or stored for energy. When you have diabetes, your body doesn’t make enough insulin, or becomes resistant to insulin.

Without insulin, your blood glucose levels will be higher than average, which can change fluid levels or cause swelling in the eyes’ tissues. If your blood glucose levels stay elevated over time, it can damage the blood vessels at the back of your eye, causing scarring and high pressure.

Types of Diabetic Eye Disease

Diabetic Retinopathy

When high blood glucose levels damage the blood vessels in your eyes, the retina can become damaged as a result. When the retina is harmed, a disease called diabetic retinopathy can develop.

Early stages of diabetic retinopathy called nonproliferative diabetic retinopathy cause blood vessels to weaken, bulge, and leak into the retina. As the disease progresses into proliferative retinopathy, some blood vessels can close off, causing new, abnormal blood vessels to grow on the retina, leading to serious vision problems.

Diabetic macular edema often occurs as a complication of diabetic retinopathy. The damage to the retina’s blood vessels leads to swelling of the surrounding tissue, including the macula.

When the macula swells (edema), it can significantly affect your vision and overall ocular health. If left untreated, diabetic macular edema can lead to blindness.

How is Diabetic Eye Disease Diagnosed?

A diabetic eye exam differs from a standard eye exam in that your optometrist will focus on evaluating the health of the blood vessels inside your eye. They’ll likely give you special eye drops that will dilate your pupil, giving them a better view of the inside and back of your eye.

We also use these diagnostic technologies to identify early signs of diabetic eye disease:

Optos Ultra-Widefield Retinal Imaging

Ultra-widefield retinal imaging gives optometrists a much wider view of your retina when compared to manual assessments. The image-capture technology also provides high-resolution images that we can keep on file to monitor over time.

Ocular coherence tomography (OCT) is a non-invasive imaging test that uses light waves to take cross-sectional pictures of your retina. These images allow your optometrist to view each layer within your retina, which can pinpoint signs of abnormal bleeding, scarring, and other symptoms of diabetic eye disease.

The visual field test is an important test used to measure the area of your vision. The test involves staring into a machine at a point on the screen and clicking a button when you see a flicker of light. Testing your field of vision can effectively detect if your vision loss is related to diabetic eye disease like glaucoma.

We’ll always tell you ahead of time if we expect to dilate your pupils so you can be prepared. If you need a diabetic eye exam, please give us a call or fill out our book appointment form!

Our Locations

Antioch

Find our Antioch clinic in the beautiful Lone Tree Landing shopping center, on the corner of Hillcrest Avenue and Lone Tree Way.

Contact Information

Address

5009 Lone Tree Way, Suite A
Antioch, CA 94531

Our Hours

Monday
CLOSED
Tuesday
8:30 AM5:30 PM
Wednesday
8:30 AM5:30 PM
Thursday
8:30 AM5:30 PM
Friday
9 AM5:30 PM
Saturday
By Appointment Only
Sunday
CLOSED

*Our clinic is closed for lunch from noon to 1:30 PM every day.

Walnut Creek

Our Walnut Creek location is Suite C of the Ygnacio Woods Medical Building on Ygnacio Valley Road.

Contact Information

Address

2255 Ygnacio Valley Road, Suite C
Walnut Creek, CA 94598

Our Hours

Monday
CLOSED
Tuesday
8:30 AM5:30 PM
Wednesday
9 AM5:30 PM
Thursday
8:30 AM5:30 PM
Friday
8:30 AM5:30 PM
Saturday
By Appointment Only
Sunday
CLOSED

*Our clinic is closed for lunch from noon to 1:30 PM every day.

Find our Antioch clinic in the beautiful Lone Tree Landing shopping center, on the corner of Hillcrest Avenue and Lone Tree Way.

Contact Information

Address

5009 Lone Tree Way, Suite A
Antioch, CA 94531

Our Hours

Monday
CLOSED
Tuesday
8:30 AM5:30 PM
Wednesday
8:30 AM5:30 PM
Thursday
8:30 AM5:30 PM
Friday
9 AM5:30 PM
Saturday
By Appointment Only
Sunday
CLOSED

*Our clinic is closed for lunch from noon to 1:30 PM every day.

Our Walnut Creek location is Suite C of the Ygnacio Woods Medical Building on Ygnacio Valley Road.

Contact Information

Address

2255 Ygnacio Valley Road, Suite C
Walnut Creek, CA 94598

Our Hours

Monday
CLOSED
Tuesday
8:30 AM5:30 PM
Wednesday
9 AM5:30 PM
Thursday
8:30 AM5:30 PM
Friday
8:30 AM5:30 PM
Saturday
By Appointment Only
Sunday
CLOSED

*Our clinic is closed for lunch from noon to 1:30 PM every day.

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