DOH: Early detection needed to prevent diabetic retinopathy

According to the World Health Organization, diabetic retinopathy is a leading cause of blindness worldwide, accounting for two percent of legally blind and 10 percent of those with severe visual handicaps.

"Diabetes is one of our highest burdens of illness and retinopathy, yung mabubulag ka dahil sa nasira na yung retina ng mata, main cause niyan si diabetes (it's when a patient goes blind because diabetes has already affected the retina)," DOH Secretary Teodoro Herbosa said in a media forum on Wednesday.

"Pag na-detect mo early ang retinopathy, hindi mabubulag yung pasyente (If you detect retinopathy early, the patient will not go blind)," Herbosa explained.

The WHO, meanwhile, recommends DR screening for all people with diabetes and treatment for the prevention of blindness as an effective intervention in tackling a noncommunicable disease.

"So very important yung (the) early detection, very important para ma-prevent (to prevent) retinopathy, you must be able to control the sugar ng ating mga diabetics (of our diabetes patients)," Herbosa added.