Regular eye exams can detect diabetes

June 18, 2010

Getting a regular, comprehensive eye exam could have health benefits that extend far beyond maintaining good vision, the Tampa Tribune reports.

While eye exams still primarily serve as a significant way to prevent blindness by catching conditions such as glaucoma early, experts say that eye tests can sometimes detect symptoms of other serious health problems like diabetes and hypertension.

Recognizing both eye-related problems as well as other problems early is the biggest key in treating them. Sometimes simply noticing the symptoms can prevent any further damage.

"A large percentage of time their vision loss is due to an eye disease. Patients are often in denial. It's hard for most to accept their diagnosis," Ophthalmologist Dr Keith B Stolte told the news source.

According to the American Optometric Association, approximately 23 million Americans have diabetes. However, even more alarming is that almost one third, or 6 million, of them are not even aware they have the disease. Experts add that there are a litany of vision problems that can be cause by diabetes including glaucoma and cataracts.