Other treatment options for the wet form of AMD include Anti-angiogenesis Therapy with injections of anti-VEGF medications or Photodynamic Therapy (PDT). Your doctor will determine whether these treatments are appropriate for your eye. Patients who do well with these therapies continue on the treatment and would likely not require surgery. If vision continues to become worse, despite these treatments, then macular translocation surgery may be an option.

Anti-angiogenesis Therapy: Several medications limit the growth of new blood vessels or diminish their injury to the retina and may prevent vision loss from wet AMD. These are typically injected in and/or around the eye. Therapies used include pegaptanib (Macugen) or ranibizumab (Lucentis), both of which are approved by the FDA for injection into the eye. In some cases doctors may use other medications which are not currently FDA approved for injection into the eye. 

Photodynamic therapy (PDT): Dye is used to make abnormal blood vessels sensitive to light. The dye is injected intravenously and activated by a low-power laser, sometimes called "cold" laser.

Conventional Laser Therapy: A high-power laser, sometimes called "hot" laser, burns the abnormal blood vessels and overlying retina. This treatment may be used when the abnormal vessels are outside the center of the macula.

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Surgeons offer new treatment for degenerative eye disease. For details, view the streaming video file: Select either high-speed internet playback or playback over modem.

Find out more about how both your quality of life and your visual acuity improve after macular translocation surgery.