Are blurry vision, dark spots, or sudden changes in your eyesight making you worry about how diabetes is affecting your eyes? At New York Retina Center, Dr. Brandon Johnson provides intravitreal injections for diabetic retinopathy to address retinal swelling and abnormal blood vessels, helping you protect the vision you rely on every day.
Preserve Your Vision From Diabetic Changes
Diabetic retinopathy is a complication of diabetes that occurs when prolonged high blood sugar damages the tiny blood vessels in your retina. These vessels can weaken, leak fluid or blood, or become blocked. In more advanced disease, fragile new blood vessels may develop. Fluid buildup in the macula can also cause diabetic macular edema and affect your central vision.
Intravitreal injections deliver medication directly into the vitreous, the gel-like substance inside your eye. Anti-VEGF medications block a protein that contributes to abnormal blood vessel growth and leakage. By reducing this activity, injections can decrease retinal swelling, control abnormal vessels, slow the progression of diabetic retinopathy, and help preserve your vision.
Intravitreal Injections for Diabetic Retinopathy Can Treat These Symptoms:
- Blurred or fluctuating vision
- Dark spots or areas in your vision
- Difficulty seeing fine details
- Reduced central vision
- Vision changes caused by retinal swelling
- Distorted or wavy vision
- Colors appearing faded or washed out
- Vision loss related to diabetic macular edema
What Happens During Intravitreal Injections for Diabetic Retinopathy?
Before your injection, your eye is numbed with an anesthetic and thoroughly cleaned with an antiseptic to reduce the risk of infection. Your eyelids are gently held open so you don’t have to worry about blinking. You’ll look in a specific direction while Dr. Johnson carefully inserts a very fine needle through the white part of your eye and delivers the medication into the vitreous. You may briefly feel pressure, but the injection itself takes only seconds.
Types of Intravitreal Injections for Diabetic Retinopathy
Several injectable medications can be used to manage diabetic retinal disease, including diabetic macular edema. While many work by targeting the same underlying process, they have important differences. Dr. Johnson can determine which option may be appropriate based on what is happening inside your retina and how your eyes respond to treatment.
Eylea
Eylea (aflibercept) is an FDA-approved anti-VEGF medication used for diabetic retinopathy and diabetic macular edema. VEGF is a protein that can cause weakened retinal blood vessels to leak and encourage abnormal new vessels to grow. Eylea acts like a trap for VEGF, preventing it from activating these changes. This can reduce retinal swelling and help protect your vision.
Eylea HD
Eylea HD contains the same active medication as Eylea, aflibercept, but at a higher 8 mg dose. It also blocks VEGF to help reduce leaky, abnormal blood vessels and fluid buildup in your retina. The higher dose remains effective for longer, potentially allowing more time between injections for some patients after their initial treatments.
Vabysmo
Vabysmo (faricimab-svoa) takes a two-part approach to diabetic macular edema. It blocks VEGF-A while also targeting another protein called Ang-2. These proteins act as signals that can contribute to leaky, unstable retinal blood vessels. By interfering with both signals, Vabysmo helps stabilize these vessels, reduce fluid buildup in the macula, and protect your central vision.
Avastin
Avastin (bevacizumab) is another medication that blocks VEGF, helping reduce abnormal blood vessel growth and leakage within the retina. It was originally developed and FDA-approved to treat certain cancers. However, retina specialists commonly use Avastin to manage diabetic retinal disease and help control vision-threatening retinal changes.
Schedule Your Consultation
New York Retina Center is committed to helping you manage diabetic eye disease with experienced, compassionate care. Dr. Brandon Johnson is a board-certified ophthalmologist with over 15 years of retina experience and advanced training at Wills Eye Institute and Emory Eye Center. He takes time to understand your vision concerns and recommend care tailored to your eyes. Schedule your consultation for intravitreal injections for diabetic retinopathy in Manhattan today.
