Diabetic retinopathy, hitherto the most common cause of blindness in those between 30-64 years of age has become treatable. Both diabetic maculopathy and proliferative retinopathy can be treated effectively by photocoagulation. The treatment is most successful if given early, before visual loss becomes irreversible. Recently, vitrectomy with additional microsurgical techniques has been developed and shown to be effective in restoring vision to many patients blind from the complications of proliferative retinopathy.