About Your Intraocular Injection for Adults

This resource explains what to expect before, during, and after your intraocular (IN-truh-AH-kyoo-ler) injection (shot).

An intraocular injection is a way to give medicine directly into your eye. Your healthcare provider will explain which medicine you’re getting during your procedure and why you’re getting it.

The medicine your healthcare provider will use depends on:

• Your diagnosis (cause of your illness).
• The amount of treatment you need.

Intraocular injections are used to treat many eye problems, such as:

• Bleeding.
• Wet macular degeneration (MA-kyoo-ler dee-JEH-neh-RAY-shun). This is a disorder caused by abnormal blood vessels that leak fluid or blood into the center of your eye.
• Diabetic retinopathy (REH-tih-NAH-puh-thee). This is a disease of your retina that affects your vision.
• High intraocular pressure. This is pressure in your eye that’s higher than normal.
• Some eye cancers.
• Tumors inside the eye.

For some people, the injection may cause blurry vision in the eye that was treated. If so, you may need someone to take you home.

What to do the day of your intraocular injection

Things to remember

• You can eat and take your usual medicines the morning of your procedure.
• Wear your glasses on the day of your procedure. If you wear contact lenses, you’ll need to take them out before the procedure.
• Bring a list of all the medicines and supplements you’re taking. This includes over-the-counter medicine (medicine you buy without a prescription).

Where to go

Your care team will tell you where to go for your procedure. This will be one of these locations:

• The Ophthalmology Suite in Memorial Hospital (MSK’s main hospital)
  425 East 67th Street (between First and York Avenues)
  New York, NY 10065

Take the C elevators to the 3^rd Floor and go to Suite A330.

• The Rockefeller Outpatient Pavilion (also called MSK 53rd Street)
  160 E. 53rd Street (between Lexington and Third Avenues)
  New York, NY 10022

Take the elevator to the 9^th Floor.

What to expect when you arrive

Many staff members will ask you to state and spell your name and date of birth many times. You’ll also get an armband with your name and date of birth. This is for your safety. People with the same or a similar name as you may be having procedures on the same day.

Your ophthalmology team will check and take pictures of your eye. Your healthcare provider will have you sign a consent form. A consent form is a form that says you agree to the procedure and understand the risks.

You’ll get eye drops to dilate (make bigger) your pupil. Your pupil is the black part of your eye. These drops may blur your vision and make your eyes sensitive to light. It may be hard to read and focus on objects that are close to you.

Your ophthalmology team will bring you into the procedure room for your injection. Your procedure will take less than 5 minutes. It may take longer to get ready for your procedure.

In the procedure room

Once you’re in the procedure room, you’ll sit in the exam chair. Your healthcare provider will lower your exam chair into a reclined position so you’re leaning back in your chair. They’ll ask you to confirm what procedure you’re having and which eye you’re having treated.

Then they’ll give you eye drops to numb your eye. They’ll clean your eye and eyelid with antiseptic. Antiseptic is liquid used to kill germs and bacteria.

Your healthcare provider will place a plastic drape (cover) with a cut out for your eye over your face. Only the eye you’re getting treated will be showing. They may also place an eyelid holder on your eye. This is to help keep your eye open during the procedure.

Your healthcare provider will ask you to focus on an object in the room. This is to position your eye. Once your eye is in the right position, they’ll inject the medicine into your eye. You may feel some pressure and a slight pinch.

After the injection, your healthcare provider will look into your eye using a bright light and a handheld lens. The nurse will clean your eye and eyelid with saline (sterile salt water).

After your intraocular injection

• The eye drops you get during your treatment may cause blurry vision. It may be hard to focus on objects close to you. This may take a few hours to wear off.
• You may see a wave-like image or bubble in your path of vision as the medicine settles in your eye. This should also get better in a few hours.
• You can eat and drink as usual.
• If you wear contact lenses, you can start wearing them again 24 hours after your procedure.

Side effects

• You may see a small amount of blood at the site of the injection. This will make the white part of your eye look red.
• Your eye may feel gritty or like you have sand in your eye.
• You may feel a slight burning feeling in your eye as the numbing medicine wears off.
• You may have some swelling under your eyelid.

The side effects often go away about 2 to 3 days after your treatment. For some people, the side effects may last for about 1 week.

Don’t rub your eyes for 2 days after your treatment. Your healthcare provider may suggest you use lubricating drops to help relieve some of these side effects. Examples include Refresh^®, Systane^® (Regular or Ultra), or GenTeal^®.

Your healthcare provider may tell you to take acetaminophen (Tylenol) for any lasting aches. If so, follow their instructions. Do not take any non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), such as Advil, Motrin, or Aleve.

When to call your healthcare provider

Call your healthcare provider if you have:

• A fever of 100.4°F (38°C) or higher.
• Pain that doesn’t get better with acetaminophen (Tylenol®).
• Decreased vision or loss of vision.
• Increased flashes of light in your eye.
• Swelling that makes it hard to open your eye.
• Gritty or scratchy feeling in your eye that doesn’t go away in a few days.

Contact information

If you have any questions or concerns, call the ophthalmology team at 212-639-7266. You can reach them Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

If you need to reach a healthcare provider after 5 p.m., during the weekend, or on a holiday, call 212-639-2000. Ask for the ophthalmology doctor on call. You can also send your care team a message on MSK MyChart (MSK’s patient portal).

If you do not have an MSK MyChart account, you can sign up at mskmychart.mskcc.org. You can also ask a member of your care team to send you an invitation.