For diabetics, the risk is higher as diabetes develops cataract faster.
People with diabetes can have an eye disease called diabetic retinopathy – an increasing cause of blindness worldwide.
This is when high blood sugar levels cause damage to blood vessels in the tissue at the back of the eye (retina).
According to Dr Amyna Sultan, director Pacific International Hospital, the prevalence of diabetes/ high sugar is increasing in PNG.
She is also an ophthalmologist (eye specialist) and stresses that a baseline eye examination is important for diabetics.
