RETINA TREATMENTS AT KMN EYECARE

Symptoms that are usually related to damage of or diseases of the retina include decreased visual acuity, metamorphopsia (distorted vision, such as straight lines looking crooked) , flashes of lights, floating dark spots in the visual field, sudden constriction of the visual field, and history of trauma or accidents. Some of these symptoms can appear when changes to the retina are still very subtle, hence a careful and thorough examination is required.

Our experts encounter a wide range of medical retina conditions on a daily basis. These conditions include diabetic retinopathy and diabetic macular edema, age-related macular degenerations (AMD), polypoidal choroidovasculopaty (PCV), central serous chorioretinopathy (CSR), retinopathy of prematurity, and other less frequent disorders too. These conditions require accurate assessments prior to the commencement of treatment in order to achieve the best possible treatment results. Our vitreoretinal diagnostic tools range from less-invasive ones such as ultrasonography and optical coherence tomography (OCT), to the more invasive fluorescein and indocyanine green angiography. To date, KMN EyeCare is the only eye center in Indonesia that provides indocyanine green angiography.

Another treatment in the field of medical retina is the intravitreal injection of medicine directly into the vitreous cavity located in the center of the eye. We also offer laser photocoagulations, either using conventional laser photocoagulation or photodynamic therapy (PDT, or “Cold Laser”) using verteporfin (Visudyne®). Like indocyanine green angiography, KMN EyeCare is the only clinic throughout Indonesia to offer PDT. We also deal with a great number of cases of subretinal bleeding, which often results from a late stage polypoidal choroidovasculopathy (PCV, a type of macular degeneration common to Asians). This is treated with intravitreal injections of a combination of a drug to liquify the blood and a gas to shift the blood from underneath the central part of the retina, known as the macula.

The combination of our experienced experts and state of the art diagnostic and therapeutic tools allows KMN EyeCare to provide high-quality medical retinal treatment to our patients throughout Indonesia. 

There was a time where the only available treatment for certain macular conditions, such as wet age related macular degeneration (wet AMD), retinal neovascularization due to vascular disorders, and diabetic macular edema, was laser photocoagulation. Lasers were applied to these patients in order to prevent their vision from further deterioration. Those lasers did not, however, offer improvement of vision.

It was not until the introduction of drugs known as anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (anti VEGF), that one could improve their vision in such treatment cases. These agents are injected directly into the vitreous cavity in the center of the eye according to predetermined intervals so as to halt disease progression and even reverse the pathology of the retina. Thus, this method yields better results both structurally and functionally. There are three anti VEGF agents that are widely used in the present time: aflibercept (Eylea), ranibizumab (Patizra), and bevacizumab (Avastin). At KMN EyeCare, the injection process of the drugs are done in a sterile environment in our operating theater.

Considering the importance of these agents as first line treatments of many retinal conditions, it is our priority at KMN EyeCare to ensure that they are available at any given time in any of our hospitals or clinics. Furthermore, we offer a very competitive rate for these injections to ensure the accessibility of the medicine for anyone in need of such treatment.

Our highly-experienced vitreoretinal surgeons perform vitreoretinal surgery both in elective and emergency settings on a daily basis. These surgeries include vitrectomy, scleral buckling, as well as a combination of both. Unlike other eye centers that still routinely perform surgeries under general anaesthesia, almost all of our surgeries are done under local anaesthesia, which is intraoperatively safer for our patients and fosters an earlier recovery as well.

In addition to common surgical retinal conditions such as retinal detachments, we also perform surgeries for more complex retinal cases. These include conditions stemming from accidents or trauma including intraocular foreign body extractions; surgeries for macular puckers/epiretinal membrane and macular holes; retinopathy of prematurity; and tractional retinal detachments due to diabetic retinopathy or other proliferative processes. Furthermore, while several of our patients come directly to KMN EyeCare for retina treatment, we also perform a great number of surgeries on referral cases that have been sent to us by other eye care providers and centers nationwide.

Aside from their clinical activities with KMN EyeCare, our surgeons are also well-acknowledged as vitreoretinal lecturers and trainers both throughout Indonesia and abroad.