epithelium and or glial cells and glutamate antagonists can prevent treat or reduce retinal pigment epithelium and or glial migration and the subsequent development of proliferative vitreoretinopathy avoidance or management of proliferative vitreoretinopathy can be achieved by administering to the patient a compound capable of reducing glutamate induced retinal cell migration in a concentration effective to reduce such migration application_number US 3821502 A description in view of our discovery that glutamate is associated with proliferative vitreoretinopathy the invention features antagonists having certain specific characteristics the ability to cross the blood retina barrier and the ability to be administered chronically within those guidelines any suitable antagonist of the glutamate induced excitotoxicity may be used in accordance with the invention as mentioned in preferred embodiments n methyl d aspartate nmda subtype of glutamate receptor channel complex may be used to reduce or prevent proliferative vitreoretinopathy related injury many antagonists of the nmda receptor have been identified watkins et al trends in pharmacological sci 11 25 1990 hereby incorporated by reference there are several recognized sub types of nmda receptor including a channel blockers u2014 i e antagonists that operate non competitively to block the nmda receptor channel b receptor antagonists u2014 antagonists that compete with nmda acting at the nmda binding site c agents acting at either the glycine co agonist site or any of several modulation sites such as the.