Intravitreal injections are used to treat many common retinal diseases such as macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy, and retinal vein occlusion with medications such as Avastin, Lucentis, and Eylea. 

 

These medications stabilize the retinal blood vessels and are injected at an office appointment into the clear jelly which fills up the center of the eye called the vitreous.  Treatment with these medications depends on the diagnostic results of high-resolution retinal imaging with optical coherence tomography (OCT) and OCT angiography.

​

Unlike other shots or immunizations to the arm, the eye can be anesthetized with eyedrops or gel in the office, rendering these intravitreal injections relatively comfortable.