Dry and wet AMD create very different cost pathways
A useful quotation should start with the exact AMD phenotype. Dry AMD without active neovascular disease can involve retinal examination, OCT, autofluorescence or other imaging and scheduled monitoring. Wet AMD can require repeated injections and repeated OCT, so a one-visit headline price does not describe the actual episode of care.
- Retina-specialist consultation
- Visual-acuity assessment
- Macular OCT
- Fundus imaging and autofluorescence when relevant
- Fluorescein, ICG or OCT angiography when clinically required
- Separate follow-up plan for the fellow eye
For wet AMD, frequency matters as much as the price per injection
UKE and University Hospital Cologne document intravitreal medication as a core treatment pathway for neovascular AMD. The financial burden is driven by the full series of treatment and monitoring visits rather than the injection procedure in isolation.
- Which anti-VEGF medicine is planned
- Loading or initial treatment schedule if used
- OCT and specialist review around treatment visits
- Criteria for extending, repeating or changing treatment
- Management if fluid, bleeding or visual decline recurs
International travel may not be practical for every injection
Wet AMD is often a longitudinal treatment problem. Before paying for care abroad, ask whether the German center is proposing a one-time second opinion, an initial treatment phase or long-term repeated injections. A safe handover to an ophthalmologist near home can be more important than repeatedly travelling for every visit, especially when treatment intervals are short.
Dry AMD and geographic atrophy should not be priced as wet AMD
Geographic atrophy is not the same treatment pathway as neovascular AMD. Patients who have read about complement-inhibitor injections in other countries should first verify what is actually authorised and available in Germany. EMA refused EU marketing authorisation for Syfovre and the Izelvay EU application was withdrawn, so those products should not be assumed to be routinely available in Germany.
What to ask the written estimate to include
For self-paying international care, compare the expected whole pathway and not just a procedure line item.
- Initial retinal assessment and all planned imaging
- Medication and injection procedure where applicable
- Number of visits assumed in the estimate
- Repeat OCT and other monitoring
- What happens if the treatment interval changes
- What is excluded from the estimate
- How unused prepayment or additional costs are settled
Why we do not publish a made-up fixed price
German university hospitals calculate international-patient estimates after medical review and a defined treatment plan. LMU states that it does not publish a general price list, while UKE describes an individualized estimate after the responsible department determines the planned treatment. A written hospital-specific estimate is therefore more useful than an unsourced generic AMD price.
Official sources
Last source-reviewed 2026-09-13. Cost procedures and published service fees can change, so confirm current terms directly with the provider before transferring money or booking travel.
- Cost Plan — LMU Klinikum International Patient Office ↗
- International patient process and cost estimate — University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf (UKE) ↗
- Age-related macular degeneration – diagnosis and treatment — University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf (UKE) ↗
- Retinal surgery and intravitreal injections — University Hospital Cologne ↗
- Syfovre – refusal of EU marketing authorization — European Medicines Agency (EMA) ↗
- Izelvay – withdrawn EU marketing-authorisation application — European Medicines Agency (EMA) ↗