1. Diabetic retinopathy is more common in patients with type 2 diabetes and increases in incidence with longer duration of diabetes. After 20 years, nearly all type 1 diabetics and two-thirds of type 2 diabetics will have some form of retinopathy. 2. Poor glycemic control increases the risk of proliferative retinopathy. Studies have shown tighter control of blood sugar can help prevent and delay the progression of retinopathy. 3. Common early signs of retinopathy include retinal hemorrhages, cotton wool spots, and flame-shaped nerve fiber layer hemorrhages caused by local ischemia and damage to retinal blood vessels from long-term high blood sugar. Later stages may involve