We know that diabetes is the leading cause of new blindness in working age adults.
We know that it’s more common among Native Americans than any other ethnic group.
We also know that only half of Native Americans get an annual eye exam, which is key to effective treatment of diabetic retinopathy, a disease that can eventually lead to blindness.
It’s a public health crisis – and one that telemedicine has made great progress toward resolving.
“Telemedicine is pivotal for diabetic retinopathy,” says Mark B. Horton, OD, MD, director of the U.S. Indian Health Service’s multi-state teleophthalmology program, a collaboration with the Joslin Diabetes Center in Boston.
