AROUND 500,000 diabetics in the UK could be risking their sight because they are missing out on the best kind of eye test, a charity has warned.
New figures show thousands are still not being given a test with a digital camera.
The examination detects diabetic retinopathy – the leading cause of blindness among people of working age in the UK.
The Government set a target for all diabetics to have been offered screening with a digital camera by the end of 2007.
But Diabetes UK said the latest Department of Health figures show 26% of adult diabetics did not receive retinal screening between January and December, 2008.
A second target was that, by March, 2008, 80% of people offered digital camera screening in 2007 would have received it.
According to the charity, 100 out of 152 of primary care trusts (PCTs) are still failing to meet that standard.
