The Retina Institute

What The Retina Institute does

The Retina Institute is a private, physician-owned ophthalmology subspecialty practice headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri, founded on the vitreoretinal practice established by Dr. Paul Cibis in the mid-1950s and organized under its current physicians partnership by the early 1960s. The practice provides diagnosis and treatment of diseases of the retina, vitreous, and macula, including age-related macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy, retinal detachment, macular holes and membranes, retinal vascular diseases, uveitis, and ocular tumors. Service modalities span in-office diagnostics (fundus photography, OCT, fluorescein angiography, indocyanine green angiography, ultrasonography, electroretinography, visual evoked potential, visual fields), in-office treatments (intravitreal anti-VEGF injections such as Avastin and Lucentis, laser photocoagulation, photodynamic therapy with Visudyne, cryotherapy), and surgical procedures (vitrectomy, scleral buckle, pneumatic retinopexy) performed at five partner surgical centers.

The go-to-market model is physician-referral-led, with intake from primary-care physicians and optometrists across Missouri and Illinois, supplemented by direct patient scheduling and same-day emergency referrals. Revenue is generated on a fee-for-service professional-services basis for office visits, diagnostic testing, in-office procedures, and surgical services, with ancillary revenue from participation in national clinical trials as a study site. The practice operates 16 clinical locations across the St. Louis metro and southern/western Illinois, plus five partner surgical centers (Center for Advanced Medicine, Gateway Surgical Center, SSM St. Clare, St. Louis Eye Surgery & Laser Center, St. Luke's), employs 100+ administrative and clinical staff, and is staffed by 11 active fellowship-trained vitreoretinal physicians and three emeriti.

The Institute is closely affiliated with the Retina Research & Development Foundation (RRDF), a separate 501(c)-style nonprofit established in 1969 that supports research, education, and a two-year vitreoretinal fellowship program that has trained more than 100 fellows since 1959. The practice maintains a dedicated clinical-trials department, hosts annual continuing-medical-education programming (Spring Retina Update, Midwest Ophthalmologic Symposium), publishes a monthly Case of the Month newsletter and quarterly FOCUS newsletter, and operates a YouTube educational channel. Patient-facing digital infrastructure consists of an online patient portal (portal.rc-stl.com) and online bill payment integrated with Phreesia. Pricing for uninsured patients is supported by a $300 minimum deposit at time of service and a $25 administrative fee for FMLA, attending-physician statements, and disability forms (waived for surgical patients).

Name

The Retina Institute

Legal name

The Retina Institute

Website

https://tri-stl.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1969

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

The Retina Institute is a private physician-owned vitreoretinal specialty practice in St. Louis operating 16 clinical locations across Missouri and Illinois, delivering medical, surgical, and clinical-trial care for retinal diseases through 11 fellowship-trained ophthalmologists and an affiliated research foundation.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Ophthalmology and Vitreoretinal Care Services

NAICS

Offices of Physicians (62111)

SIC

Services-Offices & Clinics Of Doctors Of Medicine (8011)

akta.pro primary industry

Retina & Vitreous Specialists (HLAKAKAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

Ophthalmology Surgery Centers (HLAFAIAF), Ocular Imaging & Diagnostic Testing Centers (HLAKAKAN)

Keywords

• Retinal disease treatment
• Vitreoretinal surgery
• Ophthalmology services
• Intravitreal injections
• Retinal diagnostics

Headquarters

HQ city

St Louis

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices15 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Medical Services - Office Visits: Fee-for-service medical care including eye examinations, diagnostic testing, and office-based treatments such as injections and laser procedures
2. Surgical Services: Outpatient surgical procedures including vitrectomy, scleral buckle, and other retinal surgeries performed at partner surgical centers
3. Clinical Trial Participation: Participation in national clinical trials for experimental treatments, potentially receiving compensation for study coordination and patient enrollment

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

The Retina Institute is a private ophthalmology practice that diagnoses and treats diseases of the retina, vitreous, and macula. Its offerings span in-office diagnostic imaging, intravitreal injections and laser therapy, outpatient vitreoretinal surgery performed at partner centers, a national clinical trials program, and a two-year vitreoretinal fellowship training program. The practice serves individual patients across 16 locations in Missouri and Illinois.

Product overview

The Retina Institute is a medical practice specializing in diseases and surgery of the retina, vitreous, and macula. The practice offers a comprehensive range of ophthalmic services including diagnostic testing (OCT, fundus photography, fluorescein angiography, ultrasonography, electroretinography), medical treatments (intravitreal injections, laser therapy, photodynamic therapy, cryotherapy), and surgical procedures (vitrectomy, scleral buckle, pneumatic retinopexy). The practice also maintains a clinical research division conducting clinical trials, provides fellowship training for retina specialists, and offers patient education resources and a patient portal for managing appointments and medical records.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Fundus Photography Non-invasive color photography of the retina used to document and monitor diseases such as diabetes, macular degeneration, and ocular tumors, capturing images to track disease progression and treatment response.
• Ocular Coherence Tomography (OCT) Non-invasive infrared scan of the retina that generates cross-sectional images to measure the amount of fluid in and beneath the retina for various retinal diseases.
• Fluorescein Angiography (FA) Diagnostic procedure in which a non-iodine based dye is injected into a vein and photographs are taken as the dye travels through retinal vessels, identifying leaking areas to guide treatment.
• Indocyanine Green Angiography (ICG) Diagnostic procedure using an iodine-based contrast dye and infrared light to highlight the vascular layer underneath the retina (choroid), allowing physicians to see leaks beneath blood or pigment.
• Ocular Ultrasonography Sonar-based diagnostic imaging used when the physician cannot sufficiently see the retina directly, useful for evaluating vitreous hemorrhage, cataracts, and intraocular tumors.
• Electroretinography (ERG) Test measuring how cells in the retina respond to light signals, used to identify irregular retinal function in acquired and hereditary ocular diseases.
• Intravitreal Injections Injection of anti-VEGF drugs such as Avastin and Lucentis directly into the eye to inhibit new blood vessel formation, used for age-related macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy, and retinal vein occlusions.
• Laser Treatment Laser therapy used to seal retinal tears, destroy leaking or new blood vessels (neovascularization), and treat macular degeneration and diabetic retinopathy.
• Photodynamic Therapy (PDT) Two-step treatment for wet macular degeneration using Visudyne dye injection followed by low-energy laser application to close abnormal blood vessels beneath the retina.
• Cryotherapy (Cryoplexy) Freezing treatment that applies low temperatures to retinal tissue to encourage scarring and treat retinal tears and certain other ocular conditions.
• Vitrectomy Surgical technique that cuts the vitreous away from the retina and removes shrunken vitreous, used for complex retinal detachments, with replacement by saline, gas bubble, or silicone bubble.
• Scleral Buckle Surgical procedure in which a silicone band is wrapped around the eye to indent the sclera and push the retina back into place, with the torn or detached portion sealed using laser or freezing treatment.
• Pneumatic Retinopexy Procedure in which a gas bubble is injected into the vitreous cavity to press the retina against the back wall of the eye, while laser or cryotherapy seals the retina in place.
• Clinical Trials Program Participation in national clinical studies evaluating new treatments, surgeries, and medications for various retinal diseases, with trials enrolling and in follow-up coordinated by the Institute's Clinical Studies department.
• Vitreoretinal Fellowship Program Two-year fellowship training program for physicians seeking additional instruction in the diagnosis and treatment of retinal diseases, with over 100 fellows trained since 1959.
• Focus Select Vitamins Vitamin and dietary supplement product containing high-dose nutrients recommended for patients with certain forms of age-related macular degeneration, manufactured by a pharmaceutical company and dispensed by the Institute.

Named customers2 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature6 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• McKessonminorOthersMcKesson is mentioned in an unrelated news article about their Q4 2026 earnings. This is not a partnership with The Retina Institute - the news article is about McKesson's healthcare distribution business. No actual partnership between McKesson and The Retina Institute is described in the source material.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Tennessee Retina: Multi-location retina specialty practice in Tennessee providing diagnostic, medical, and surgical retinal care with an active clinical research program. Comparable sub-specialty group with similar referral-driven model.
• US Retina: Multi-state network of vitreoretinal specialists offering surgical, medical, and clinical trial retinal care. Directly comparable to TRI in sub-specialty focus and physician practice model.
• Retina Consultants of America: PE-backed (Webster Equity Partners) network of retina specialists operating across multiple U.S. states. Most directly comparable peer given identical sub-specialty focus, multi-site clinical model, and physician partnership structure.
• Carolina Retina Institute: Regional retina specialty practice in the Carolinas offering medical, surgical, and clinical trial retinal services. Comparable in service scope and physician group structure.
• Mid-Atlantic Retina: Large multi-location retina specialty practice based in the Mid-Atlantic. Comparable in offering surgical and medical retinal care with active clinical research and fellowship training.
• Vitreoretinal Associates Medical Group: Multi-physician retina specialty practice in California offering diagnostic, medical, and surgical retinal care. Directly comparable in service mix and physician partnership structure.
• Ophthalmic Consultants of Boston: Multi-subspecialty ophthalmology group offering retinal care alongside cataract, glaucoma, and refractive services. Comparable in regional specialty group structure with retinal disease focus.
• Retina Associates of Florida: Multi-physician retina practice with several Florida offices providing vitreoretinal surgery, intravitreal injections, and clinical trials. Directly comparable in sub-specialty mix and referral-based model.

Broad incumbents

• EyeSouth Partners: PE-backed (Olympus Partners) ophthalmology platform aggregating medical and surgical retina, comprehensive ophthalmology, and optometry practices. Comparable as a scaled platform competitor in retina services.

Regional players

• Barnes Retina Institute (Washington University): Academic vitreoretinal service within WashU Ophthalmology in St. Louis, sharing overlapping physician lineage with TRI (Dr. Smith's fellowship was at Barnes). Competes locally for tertiary retinal referrals and clinical trials.

Market position

Strengths3 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@theretinainstitute
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/the-retina-institute-llc

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The Retina Institute