New research shows that nerve damage is a common side effect of type 2 diabetes, and it may begin to appear in the eyes before the disease is diagnosed.
Diabetes may cause corneal damage
The United Press International Press UPI reported that in this study, scientists used neuropathy or nerve damage in the cornea of the eye as a representative of systemic nerve damage.
The study included nearly 3500 people - 21% had type 2 diabetes, 15% had pre diabetes, and 64% had no disease - the researchers observed corneal nerves in all three groups.
The researchers found that the degree of corneal nerve damage and glucose metabolism damage increased simultaneously.
Corneal nerve injury in patients with pre diabetes was 8% higher than that in patients without diabetes. At the same time, the research results show that the corneal nerve injury of patients with diabetes is 8% higher than that of patients with pre diabetes and 14% higher than that of patients without diabetes.
Nerve injury also increases with the increase of blood sugar level and the extension of the time of diabetes. This includes higher HbA1c levels (average blood glucose levels for several months) and blood glucose levels two hours after meals.
"We know from other studies that it usually takes three to five years to develop from prodromal diabetes to type 2 diabetes. Our results come from the first such study, which shows that high levels of blood sugar can start to damage corneal nerves long ago. Type 2 diabetes," said Dr. Sara Mokhtar, internal medicine department of Maastricht University Medical Center.
"Nerve damage in the cornea is relatively easy to measure, and provides a window for nerve damage in other parts of the body. If we can detect nerve damage early, we may be able to delay or prevent it and the problems it causes, which significantly improve the quality of life," Mokhtar said.
Although neuropathy can cause various diseases, from dry eye to loss of vision, it can also cause pain and numbness in legs, feet and hands. Diabetes can also cause muscle and organ problems.
The results of the study were presented at the annual meeting of the European Diabetes Research Association in Stockholm this week. The findings presented at the medical conference were considered preliminary until they were published in a peer-reviewed journal.
Mokhtar added at the conference press conference that more research is needed to prove that higher glucose levels are the cause of damage, and whether early glucose control will delay or prevent it.