All EYES ON DIABETES: Diabetes Victoria funds vital diabetes research

MEDIA RELEASE. As the leading charity working to reduce the impact of diabetes in the Victorian community, Diabetes Victoria continues its commitment to support promising diabetes research projects. For 2017, Diabetes Victoria has contributed $1.3 million to the $3.6 million Diabetes Australian Research Program (DARP) funding pool, directly supporting 17 Victorian researchers looking into better treatment and management options for all types of diabetes, as well as reducing the risk of well-documented serious health complications.

Blog: Vision Australia staff trained to manage depressive symptoms using problem-solving therapy

Depression is a serious health concern in Australia and affects approximately 1 in 3 individuals with low vision.  For a person who has a vision impairment, depression can lead to increased levels of disability, reduced quality of life and interfere with and restrict rehabilitation outcomes (such as the use of optical devices and aids). Despite the availability of effective treatments, depression most often remains undetected and untreated in people with vision impairment.

Blog: Untangling the relationship between glucose and blood vessel function in the eye

My younger brother was four years old when he was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes mellitus. A previously well child, there were no obvious signs that his pancreas was under an insidious attack from his own immune system until his insulin ran out and he experienced dangerously high blood glucose levels.

Diabetes trial participants needed

Last November, CERA released the 'Out of Sight' report which identified that diabetes affects approximately one million Australian adults. The number is expected to double by the year 2025, posing major public health and economic concerns. However, little is known whether blood vessel dysfunction in the eye, which causes vision loss in people with diabetes, is due to the effects of high blood glucose (sugar) or an indirect result of chronic cell damage.