RETINAL VEIN OCCLUSION

WHAT CAN BE DONE TO IMPROVE VISION?

Wills Eye retina doctors are leading experts in the treatment of retinal vein occlusion with the latest clinical trials and new therapeutic approaches for RVO.

What is Retinal Vein Occlusion?

Retinal vein occlusion is a blockage in the blood vessel of your eye that can result in sight loss. 

The retinal veins carry away used blood from the nerve cells in the retina. When one of these veins becomes blocked, the used blood cannot drain away. This causes the blood to collect in the veins, which causes swelling and hemorrhage (bleeding).

There are two distinct types of retinal occlusion:

Central retinal vein occlusion (CRVO) - a blockage in the retina's main vein.
Branch retinal vein occlusion (BRVO) - a blockage in a smaller retinal vein.

Causes

CRVO: In most cases, an underlying cause is not found and we never know why it happens. It is more common in patients with glaucoma, high blood pressure, arteriosclerosis, and diabetes than it is in other people.

BRVO: This blockage is more common in patients with high blood pressure, diabetes, and atherosclerosis. Smoking is also a significant risk factor. However, in some cases, there is no apparent underlying cause. 

Julia A. Haller, MD
Ophthalmologist-in-Chief

Carl D. Regillo, MD, FACS
Chief, Retina Service

Arunan Sivalingam, MD
Co-Director, Retina Service
Director, Retina Fellowship

David H. Fischer, MD
Co-Director, Retina Service

Allen C. Ho, MD
Director, Retina Research

Richard S. Kaiser, MD
Co-Director, Retina Fellowship

Sunir J. Garg, MD
Co-Director, Retina Research

Jason Hsu, MD
Co-Director, Retina Research

James P. Dunn, MD
Director, Uveitis Unit

Allen Chiang, MD

Michael N. Cohen, MD

Mitchell F. Fineman, MD

Omesh P. Gupta, MD

M. Ali Khan, MD

Michael Klufas, MD

Ajay Kuriyan, MD

Sonia Mehta, MD

Carl Park, MD

Marc J. Spirn, MD

James F. Vander, MD

David Xu, MD

MEET WILLS EYE RETINA DOCTORS

Yoshihiro Yonekawa, MD