By: Dana Frisch
NEW YORK- Nearly one in 10 Latinos age 40 or older has a potentially sight-robbing condition that is related to diabetes, according to a California survey released this week. However, nearly 30 percent of those surveyed were unaware they had diabetes, much less a complication that can damage sight.
'That is a huge number of undiagnosed cases of diabetes,' said Dr. Rohit Varma, an associate professor of ophthalmology at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles.
'We know how to treat this,' said Varma, who said the lack of awareness was 'the saddest thing' because the condition, known as diabetic retinopathy, is both treatable and preventable.
In the study, Varma and colleagues screened 5,238 people for diabetes, high blood pressure and eye disease. Over 90 percent of those surveyed were of Mexican-American descent. Overall, 1,237, or 24 percent, had diabetes.
Of these, 29 percent did not know they had diabetes. And 38 percent -- or nine percent of all those in the survey -- had diabetic retinopathy, a condition that causes damage to the tiny capillaries that supply the retina, the light-sensitive tissue at the back of the eye.
If it progresses to an advanced stage, abnormal new blood vessels grow in the retina, and -- if not treated promptly -- the disease can cause blindness.
In past studies, diabetic retinopathy was found in 29 percent of blacks and 37 percent of whites with type II diabetes, a disease caused by a combination of genetics, poor diet and lack of exercise.
Varma said more people in the Latino community should be screened for diabetes. And if they are found to have it, he said, they should go for annual eye exams to detect diseases like diabetic retinopathy. Diabetic retinopathy is the second leading cause of visual impairment after cataracts, and a leading cause of blindness among Latinos.
Varma said that 88 percent of those in the study had an early stage of the disease called non-proliferative diabetic retinopathy. At that stage, vision is not impaired and can be treated by laser therapy and controlling blood sugar levels, he said.
Varma recommends bilingual 'community specific, culturally appropriate programs' to educate individuals within the Latino community about how to prevent diabetes and diabetic retinopathy. The 'vast majority' in the study had never had an eye exam, he said.
'There is a lack of understanding (in the Latino community) about diabetes but ... an even greater lack of understanding about eye disease and diabetes,' said Varma.
Varma presented his findings this week at the annual meeting of the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
The study, known as the Los Angeles Latino Eye Study, is funded by the National Eye Institute and includes men and women over age 40 living in and around La Puente, California.
Source: Yahoo News: Reuters Health.
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