“Can diabetes cause reading difficulties?”
My mother is 60 years old and is heavily diabetic. She has had both eyes corrected for vision and was reading without any glasses. However, off late she has been finding it difficult to read. Could diabetes be the reason for this or is it something else?
11 Answers
Diabetes causes damage to your eyes especially to the vessels that supply blood to the back of the eye, retina. If your vision is fluctuating a complete ophthalmologic exam should be performed to rule out diabetic retinopathy.
Yes, it could be her diabetes and its related bad effects on the eyes (especially the retina). It could also be cataracts or corneal disease. It would be best for her to check in with an ophthalmologist.
Your mother would do best by seeing an ophthalmologist as there are many reasons for her reduction of vision.
If her “correction" for vision so that she saw without glasses was a cataract extraction, there is often a membrane that clouds over and requires a fast treatment by a YAG LASER that can clear her vision. If that is not the case and instead there is evidence of Diabetic Retinopathy with hemorrhages and exudates, she will certainly need injections into the eye and possibly a different type of (Argon) Laser.
This is an urgent problem to resolve. If Diabetic changes exist within the retina, it is only a matter of time when your mother will lose significant amounts of vision. Diabetes is one of the most common causes for blindness throughout the world! If caught early, treatment can prevent vision loss.
Have her see an Ophthalmologist as soon as possible.
Roger Ohanesian MD
If her “correction" for vision so that she saw without glasses was a cataract extraction, there is often a membrane that clouds over and requires a fast treatment by a YAG LASER that can clear her vision. If that is not the case and instead there is evidence of Diabetic Retinopathy with hemorrhages and exudates, she will certainly need injections into the eye and possibly a different type of (Argon) Laser.
This is an urgent problem to resolve. If Diabetic changes exist within the retina, it is only a matter of time when your mother will lose significant amounts of vision. Diabetes is one of the most common causes for blindness throughout the world! If caught early, treatment can prevent vision loss.
Have her see an Ophthalmologist as soon as possible.
Roger Ohanesian MD
Yes, diabetes causes cataracts which will lead to blurry vision. This is retinal disease like macular oedema and or haemorrhages from diabetes that affect vision. Prompt treatment is needed before blindness develops. Medication and dietary control of diabetes must be followed seriously.
Diabetics can develop retinal bleeding, cataracts, glaucoma, etc., all of which can cause difficulty with reading. She should have an exam by her ophthalmologist.
If she has already had cataract surgery performed then it is probably not related to the lens implants. If she still has cataracts in place they may have worsened. More likely it is possible the diabetes has resulted in swelling in the macula of her eyes especially if her blood sugar is uncontrolled. If she has not had cataract surgery yet, large swings in blood sugar can cause blurry vision at distance and/or near. A careful eye examination will reveal the source of the reading problem.
Diabetes can cause many vision problems, even blindness. At age 60 the most frequent cause of near vision difficulties is presbyopia or aging eye, however, being a diabetic she needs to have her eyes examined by an eye MD (ophthalmologist).
David Castillejos, MD
David Castillejos, MD
If she has edema in her macula from the diabetes, then the reading vision will be affected. Also, cataracts will cause painless decrease of vision as well.
Diabetic retinopathy is one of the leading cause of vision loss. Routine eye exams are recommended for patients with diabetes to make sure that diabetes is not adversely affecting eyesight. It may be something as simple as a change in glasses prescription, but you want to make sure it's not cataracts, glaucoma, macular degeneration or the diabetes causing her vision difficulties.
Ilona Genis
Ophthalmologist
Absolutely. Diabetes can cause changes in the retina. There are different types of diabetic retinopathy. If your mother has some changes, she needs to be treated. There are focal treatments and injections can be used to improve her vision. Also sometimes there is a membrane formed behind the implant which can be treated with laser. She needs to see an ophthalmologist to figure out what is the cause.
If sugars are off if could cause reading difficulty but it could also be do to diabetic retinopathy. She should have eyes checked by an eye care provider
