Yes its important for people to know that retinopathy and neuropathy are related conditions caused by diabetes. But retinopathy is easier to detect because blood vessels in eyes are easy to see compared to blood vessels in one's feet. So pay attention to retinopathy because if you don't have that then to don't have neuropathy either. And if one has retinopathy then neuropathy isn't far behind. So I don't go by a1c alone. If I was developing retinopathy then my A1c is too high for me. Diabetes and medication isn't one size fits all. Last time I saw ophthalmologist he said no retinopathy. Then I have been seeing another specialist for strabismus and he wrote that a "wool spot" has been detected. I don't know what a wool spot means but I am assuming that its beginning retinopathy. The techs said that I might have gotten that before I was diagnosed with diabetes and did not know I had it. You can get lots of information from techs that doctors don't say because they are doctors and only tell you what you need to know. I never had skin lesions before. But I was in perimenopause when I was diagnosed with diabetes. So my hormones were going up and down. Lots of women have skin problems in this phase of life. Well they told me recently that I hit menopause based on my estrogen levels. So it's official. Of course they don't tell you details but I think they are waiting to see if my skin lesions clear because of change of life. Doctors watch and wait a lot, especially mayo doctors. That's because they are good doctors. They know that the human body heals itself and medical care often is watching what happens. It's the younger doctors that want to operate right away or medicate right away. Older doctors are more experienced and patient. They will just tell you to wait and see. Maybe that's why they only tell you what you need to know. They don't want you to worry and they are waiting to see what happens. I have 24 years at Mayo Clinic. First as mother of son with genetic condition. Now I am patient too. So I have experienced both caregiver and patient roles. They are not the same at all.