Retinopathy

[Duane Charles]

Just wondering why it is that if anything if found during the yearly retinopathy test the DN at the surgery isn’t informed and you have to wait for the hospital to contact you? I was informed by the opticians that did my test the local hospital aren’t the quickest at getting back to you.

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

My understanding is that the retinopathy screening has now been extracted from the ‘main’ diabetes care, aand is handled by a separate service.

So I think it’s the service that you have to wait for. my screening sometimes takes place at my GP or an associated health centre, but always with external staff, and sometimes at external (private-looking) clinics/rooms.

The last one (a few days ago) was in what looked like an empty unit on a shopping centre!

The woman that did me this week said results would be back mid-Jan.

They take the photos away and give them a really close look-over.

 

[Leadinglights]

I think it depends on the system in your area. My screening is done by a Worcestershire based program at a Coventry health centre who send me the appointment and the result comes to me and the GP.

 

[rebrascora]

I normally get my results letter within 2 weeks. The results have to be double or even triple checked I believe before a letter is authorized with the result and at this time of year things will likely be slower. I think they normally say you will hear from them within 6 weeks but I always get my letter sooner than that.

 

[rebrascora]

I rarely see the nurse so it wouldn't be much help to me if she was told before me. It is the ophthalmology dept. who will decide if you need treatment and will send out an appointment if necessary, so I am not sure it really has anything much to do with the nurse at the surgery in the short term. In the longer term it is his/her job to help you manage your diabetes effectively to reduce the risk of further deterioration.

 

[harbottle]

I think it depends on the system in your area. My screening is done by a Worcestershire based program at a Coventry health centre who send me the appointment and the result comes to me and the GP.

Same place I have mine.

Have you had an appointment for next year?

I usually have the letter in November and an appointment in January, but nothing this year.

 

[Leadinglights]

Same place I have mine.

Have you had an appointment for next year?

I usually have the letter in November and an appointment in January, but nothing this year.

I queried it last year as I hadn't had the yearly appointment but was told if there were no issues then it would be a 2 year check so I don't expect to get one as I had it last Feb 23

 

[grovesy]

I agree with others it must depending on the system in your area, my results appear on my online/app record. I have never had my screening at a hospital either, mine is done through the local screening service that visits various locations around the area.

 

[Duane Charles]

Although my referral was arranged by DN at the surgery, I got a letter from the local hospital advising me of a list of opticians I could call to arrange the test. What I hadn’t seen was the bit that said results would be sent to me and my GP within 3 weeks of being seen. When the optician told me the results had gone when they had finished, I assumed, wrongly, that they’d gone to the surgery and not the hospital. That said my results showed blood splatter in my left eye and would be marked as a diabetic episode.

 

[Leadinglights]

Although my referral was arranged by DN at the surgery, I got a letter from the local hospital advising me of a list of opticians I could call to arrange the test. What I hadn’t seen was the bit that said results would be sent to me and my GP within 3 weeks of being seen. When the optician told me the results had gone when they had finished, I assumed, wrongly, that they’d gone to the surgery and not the hospital. That said my results showed blood splatter in my left eye and would be marked as a diabetic episode.

Can you go back to the optician and get them to give you a copy of the report which you could take to your surgery or get them to send it.

 

[Duane Charles]

Believe it or not after I left the DN, I went to the optician to ask where they had sent it, little did I think to ask them if they could send it to the surgery. By the time I have my next DN appointment they should have had the full report from the hospital. I can always ask the optician if they can send it.

 

[Duane Charles]

I was thinking about what the optician said to me about what they’d seen when I had my retinopathy check, should I be worried about the “blood splatter” in my left eye? Is this the onset of glaucoma which my mum had? Can you have glaucoma without being diabetic as my mum wasn’t or never said?

 

[rebrascora]

Since you were having retinal screening I would imagine the opticians comment will likely refer to some retinopathy where there has been a (hopefully) slight bleed in the retina. Blood splatter is obviously not a technical term and to my mind it was probably not a helpful comment, especially as the photos of your retina need double or even triple checking before a decision is made about any issues.
Glaucoma is a different test and involves putting pressure on the eye ball I think. That is not part of the retinal screening, so you should book an appointment for a regular eye test and ask them to check for Glaucoma and explain that you had a close relative with it. Since you are diabetic, I believe the testing should be free.
I always thought there was a connection between Glaucoma and diabetes but I think you can get it without being diabetic. I stand to be corrected though.

 

[Duane Charles]

@rebrascora the term used wasn’t particularly helpful. However, having seen the picture with several dark spots in the lower part of the retina, I accepted what had been said by the optician at the time. About a week before I went to A&E because of a large area of white in my left eye had become “blooded” (see attached). Perhaps the two are linked, blood pressure was mentioned but it was around 120/80 as it always seems to be.

 

[eggyg]

I had mine on Wednesday, they always say up to 6 weeks for results. Last year I got it in two days!

 

[Proud to be erratic]

Glaucoma runs in my paternal side of my family. My Grandfather went blind by the late 1940s - of course diagnosis and treatment for this was rare in those days. My sister had glaucoma in both eyes and this was detected in the late 90s, monitored and treatment with drops started in the early naughties. Some 5+/- years ago she had a fairly routine procedure for each eye (a few months apart) and was monitored for 3 or 4 years then got a full ""all clear".

I was suspected of possible glaucoma from a thorough but routine eye test at my local independent opticians in 2004. At that moment I had not previously declared my familial background. The optician referred me into the NHS optometry process and the Specialist confirmed the optician's diagnosis: that glaucoma was a possibility. For 19 years I've had annual NHS reviews. These always included a "field of vision" check by a technician, then seen by the Consultant who did a simple eye test and inspection of each eye; then drops were administered and after about 10 mins he looked into each eye with what seemed due diligence and gave me a cautious all clear for now, but come back next year. This year, the same Consultant that I first saw in 2004 signed me off, saying after almost 20 yrs he was seeing little change and my risk had diminished with age. Time to stop. But mention the familial connection with Glaucoma to any future optician as a precaution.

At no point have I ever had a "bloodshot" eye, nor has my sister.

The main way of diagnosing glaucoma was from a "puff" pressure test. Totally painless, always takes me by surprise - even though I know the puff of air is coming. From that pressure test any abnormality in the fluid within the eye ball is detected which could lead to a glaucoma possible or actual diagnosis. Anything to do with Glaucoma brings about free eye tests at your opticians and free NHS treatment. Today's medical knowledge of the condition is extremely good and the visual eye inspecting equipment has seriously improved in the last 20 years, both at my local opticians and in the NHS Clinic I've been going to for the last 19 years. It always feels like one bit of the NHS that works really well - at least that's my perception from Bucks, including over the Covid period.

I don't think Glaucoma has any connection with Diabetes. At any optician's mention your familial connection and every optician in England will immediately do a free check (which they'll claim for against their NHS budget in some way) and there should be no waiting for the normal 2 yearly routine eye check.

Incidentally my former Optician retired in 2022 and her practice was taken over by another independent owner. I wanted an eye test inside the newly created 2 yrly entitlement, mentioned my existing diabetes and promptly had a free test only 10 months after my last one. I felt my prescription wasn't correct any more. I signed a form, confirming my diabetes and apparent change in correction from my specs - which presumably gave the business a payment from the NHS.

 

[Proud to be erratic]

I should have said that blood pressure and eyeball pressure are, as far as I know, totally unrelated.

 

[Duane Charles]

I have just had a phone conversation with someone who co-ordinated my diabetic eye screening and have said that what has been reported isn’t anything I should be concerned about and therefore I won’t be referred on to ophthalmology. However, if I do have any further concerns to contact the eye triage team.

 

[Duane Charles]

The other thing that I did ask but they were unable to answer “was the subconjunctive haemorrhage I had a couple of weeks ago linked to the blood splatter seen on my retinal scan?” I will ask my DN when I see them on the 19th