Diabetic retinopathy is the main cause of blindness in the population between 25 and 75 years and the second in over 75. In La Rioja 10,000 people do not know that they suffer from diabetes.Controlling glucose reduces the ocular involvement produced by diabetes by 50%.
The Caja Rioja-Gran Cultural Center will host a new conference of the Health Classroom that monthly organize the Caja Rioja Foundation and the Viamed Los Manzanos hospital, dedicated to the loss of vision and, more specifically, to the diabetic retinopathy, one of the consequencesof diabetes.
The ophthalmologist and expert eye surgeon, José Luis del Río Mayor, and Alberto Avenoza Mañas, president of Riojan associated diabetics, will speak tomorrow, Tuesday, December 21, 'Diabetes and the loss of vision'.
Vision loss is one of the complications associated with diabetes (the risk of blindness in diabetic is 25 times greater than that of the general population) and occurs as the disease develops and blood sugar levelsThey remain abnormally high, injuring blood vessels, nerves and other structures, being able to cause blindness.
The incidence of retinopathy is significantly associated with a series of factors such as: the duration of the disease greater than six years, the presence of proteins in the urine (microalbuminuria), the lack of glycemic control and peripheral arteriopathy.
Good blood glucose control reduces the risk of diabetic retinopathy by 50%, which gives us an idea of the importance of early diagnosis to stop its progress.
In relation to the Autonomous Community of La Rioja, the prevalence of DM1 is estimated at 0.2% of the population that, applied to the censored population (330,000 inhabitants), gives us an approximate estimate of 660 patients with DM1.
In relation to the prevalence of DM2, it is estimated around 10% which gives us an estimate of 33,000 patients with DM2 in our community.Regarding the incidence, in the case of DM1 it is encrypted in 10-12 new cases per 100,000 inhabitants/year, which provides an estimate of 35 to 42 new cases each year in La Rioja.
As for the DM2, it is at 60-150 new cases per 100,000 inhabitants/year, which provides an estimate of 198 to 495 new cases every year in La Rioja.