• While there is no cure for macular degeneration, anti-angiogenic eye injections are usually the therapy of choice for patients with wet macular degeneration.
• These anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) eye injections act against the new blood vessels underneath the macula and can prevent them from causing further leakage or bleeding into the patients center vision.
• Early treatment can prevent further vision loss and has a greater likelihood of regaining vision than in patients who have delayed diagnosis and treatment.
• The FDA has approved Lucentis, Eylea and Vabysmo, which are Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor (VEGF) inhibitors, for injection into the eye.
• A fourth VEGF inhibitor, Avastin, has been approved by the FDA for injection into veins as a cancer therapy, and is used as an “off-label” therapy for wet macular degeneration as well.
• These treatments are approved from every 4 weeks up to every 16 weeks depending on each patient’s response to treatment.
• With regular treatment, approximately 95% of patients are able to maintain vision.

How is the eye injection performed?

• The eye is typically numbed with anesthetic eye drops or in certain cases an anesthetic eye injection.
• A lid speculum is used to keep the eyelids open.
• Betadine is used to clean the surface of the eye from bacteria.
• A small needle is then used to inject the medication into the eye in a typically painless technique.
• The eye is then washed and the eyelid speculum is removed.

What are the risk factors of treatment?

• Eye infection
• Retinal detachment
• Bleeding
• Vision loss

Make sure to discuss with your eye doctor a full list of potential risk factors for eye injections