Medical and surgical retina service
Our medical retina team features first-class consultants, nurses and other retina specialists who are highly experienced at treating conditions at the back of the eye.
Quick facts
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What is it for?
Diagnosing and treating back of the eye conditions
Treatment overview
Our medical retina service specialises in diagnosing, monitoring and treating conditions that affect the lining of the back of eye (the retina). Treatment of a condition usually involves medication injected into the eye, eye drops, or laser treatment.
At The London Clinic’s medical retina service, our first-class ophthalmology consultants are experts in conditions that affect the back of the eye.
We use state-of-the-art diagnostic technologies to assess your eye health and identify problems, so we can develop the best care plan for your needs from our comprehensive range of treatment options.
Your consultant will be assisted by a leading team of specialist nurses, optometrists and ophthalmic photographers who will take care of you from your first consultation, during your treatment and throughout your recovery.
Our priority is to provide you with the very best and latest treatments, as well as outstanding personalised care, without delay.
Why choose The London Clinic
Excellence in one place
The London Clinic, in collaboration with Northwestern Medicine, operate as teams of experts with world-class resources, dedicated to maintaining the highest standards of care. Surrounded by the latest treatments and advice, you’ll have everything you need to get back to your best health. Our patient rooms are designed for your comfort, while our catering team, in collaboration with expert dietitians, provide healthy, delicious meals to support your recovery.
Personal care, every time
Exceptional patient care is a way of life for us. Our teams will be with you every step of the way, tailoring your care to your specific needs and giving you the peace-of-mind that comes with knowing you’re in the best hands. To provide exceptional care, we keep our staff-to-patient ratio low, so our nurses, clinicians, therapists, and support teams can offer a personalised, quality experience. You’ll notice the difference.
Effortlessly simple
We work together as one to guide you through every step of your patient experience. From explaining your personal treatment plan to ensuring all details are taken care of, we make the process stress-free, so you can focus on your health. Whether it’s your first consultation or follow-up care, our teams are here to provide seamless support and the peace of mind you deserve
What's included in your package?
Choosing The London Clinic means your treatment plan will be laid out for you, with all the details taken care of so you can focus on you.
Your treatment package will include:
- Enhanced pre-admission assessment
- Your treatment with our complete care team at your fingertips
- Personalised aftercare and follow-up
We want you to be in control of your health. That’s why we also offer optional services such as comprehensive recovery packages and extra touches for you to choose from during your stay with us. To help you manage the cost, we also offer a 0% finance option, allowing you to spread the payments for your treatment over 12 months with no added interest. Learn more about our finance options here.
How to pay
- You can use private medical insurance (PMI) to access this treatment. We work with all major PMI providers in the UK and many internationally
- You can pay for yourself (self-pay)
- If you’re paying for yourself, we have 0% finance options available with Chrysalis. Find out more here.
What diagnostic procedures does the medical retina service offer?
To diagnose eye conditions at the back of the eye, The London Clinic’s medical retina service uses a number of state-of the-art imaging procedures. These include:
If you have diabetes, tiny blood vessels at the back of your eye can deteriorate and leak fluid into and under the retina.
This can lead to your vision becoming blurred or distorted.
A sheet of naturally occurring cells develop on or above the surface of the retina.
As the sheet shrinks, it can cause the retina to wrinkle under it.
This can distort and blur your vision.
A small gap develops in the macula at the centre of your retina.
This can lead to blurred vision and straight lines starting to appear wavy and distorted.
An emergency condition that involves your retina detaching from the inside of your eye.
Floaters, flashing lights, a dark shadow in your vision and blurred vision are all symptoms.
It can be repaired with surgery.
A blockage of a retinal vein causes blood and other fluid to leak into the retina.
This can suddenly but painlessly cause a loss of vision.
A genetic eye condition that affects the light sensitive cells in the retina.
Symptoms include not seeing well in dim light and losing the ability to see things outside your direct line of sight (poor peripheral vision).
The clear, gel-like substance in the centre of your eye (vitreous) shrinks and pulls on the retina to cause a tear in it.
This can lead to distorted vision, flashes of light in your vision and objects appearing smaller than they are.
We use eye injections (also known as intravitreal injections) to administer medicines that can treat retinal conditions.
With your eye numbed, a very fine needle is passed into the vitreous cavity of the eye. This is the back part of the eye that’s filled with a gel known as vitreous.
Treatments are usually given as a course of injections that occur once a month for a minimum of three or four months. Treatment may continue for many months, depending on the response to treatment.
There are some conditions that only require a single injection, while others require regular injections every few months.
Laser treatment involves an intense focused beam of light passing through your pupil and burning areas of the back of the eye, depending on the condition you have.
At The London Clinic, we typically use laser treatment to:
- Treat a retinal tear to reduce the risk of a retinal detachment
- Manage or reduce the risk of abnormal new blood vessels on the retina
- Reduce a build-up of fluid in the eye or treat fluid leakage in the macula (the centre part of the retina)
Most laser treatments are done in our outpatient clinic with just local anaesthetic drops being used to numb the eye. This means treatment usually takes less than one hour, and you can go home the same day.
A vitrectomy operation is surgery carried out inside the eye. It involves three small keyhole cuts being made on the white of the eye for access.
As part of the surgery, the vitreous gel in the back half of the eye is removed. Your eye does not replace or regrow the vitreous gel.
Instead, at the end of the operation, it’s replaced with a balanced salt solution, a gas bubble or an oil bubble.
Vitrectomy surgery is used to treat a range of conditions, including retinal detachment, macular holes, epiretinal membrane, vitreous haemorrhage and advanced complications of diabetic eye disease.