Mary Elizabeth Hartnett, MD holds the Calvin S. and JeNeal N. Hatch Presidential Endowed Chair in Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences and is a Distinguished Professor at the University of Utah. She is an adjunct professor at the University of Utah departments of Neurobiology and Pediatrics. Dr. Hartnett is the founder and director of Pediatric Retina at the John A. Moran Eye Center and principal investigator of the Retinal Angiogenesis Laboratory.
As director of Moran’s Pediatric Retina Center, Dr. Hartnett is one of a few pediatric retina specialists internationally trained to diagnose and treat pediatric retina disorders, which disrupt the healthy development of the light-sensitive tissue at the back of the eye. She also practices as a vitreoretinal surgeon, providing treatment to patients throughout the Mountain West. She performs surgery at the Moran Eye Center and Primary Children’s Hospital.
Her mission is to deliver the best possible care and education while conducting critical research to make future advances in pediatric retina care.
She created the first-ever academic textbook on the subject, Pediatric Retina, in its third edition, which has proven to be an invaluable resource for residents and ophthalmologists internationally. She is a co-director of the Advances in Pediatric Retina meeting held every two years, most recently in 2019 at the U.
Dr. Hartnett has received numerous awards, including the Weisenfeld Award, the highest award for clinician-scientists given by the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO), in 2018. She received the 2019 Paul Kayser/Retina Research Foundation Global Award, the Macula Society’s 2016 Paul Henkind Award and its 2019 Arnall Patz Medal, and the 2021 Suzanne Veronneau-Troutman Award, the most prestigious award from Women in Ophthalmology. In 2022, she will receive the Gertrude Pyron award, the highest award from the American Association of Retina Specialists. She was one of six at the University of Utah to receive a distinguished research award, for Pediatrics and Ophthalmology.
Dr. Hartnett’s prolific publication record includes more than 225 articles in peer-reviewed journals and over 40 book chapters. She has delivered numerous national and international invited lectures. Her long list of professional committee work includes serving as chair of the Publications Committee of ARVO, as a mentor for the ARVO Leadership Development Program, and in leadership positions internationally as chair of the research advisory committees for The Macula Society and the Jack McGovern Coats Disease Foundation as well as Chair of the Credentialing Committee for The Retina Society. She reviews manuscripts for more than 20 eye and science journals and serves on the editorial boards of PlosOne, Molecular Vision, and the American Journal of Ophthalmology. Dr. Hartnett is a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons (FACS) and a Silver and Gold Fellow of the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (FARVO).
Lejla Vajzovic is a vitreoretinal surgeon with expertise in adult and pediatric retinal diseases and surgery. She is a Director of Duke Vitreoretinal Fellowship Program and is a tenured Associate Professor of Ophthalmology at Duke University. She is passionate about translational research and collaborates closely with Duke Biomedical engineers to develop imaging devices to improve ophthalmic care. She serves as a principal investigator for numerous national clinical trials in early to late stages of development. Her research interests span from pediatric retinal diseases such as retinopathy of prematurity to adult diseases such as age-related macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy and venous occlusive diseases, as well as vitreoretinal surgical topics such as retinal tears, retinal detachments, macular holes and macular puckers.
In addition, Dr. Vajzovic is interested in cutting edge technologies and recovery of vision in hereditary and common retinal diseases with gene-therapy, stem cell technology and retinal implants. She is a co-director of the Duke Pediatric Retina and Optic Nerve Center, and she directs the Duke Center for Artificial and Regenerative Vision, where performs gene-therapy delivery and she implants the Argus II “bionic eye” to restore vision to individuals with total blindness. An influential educator, she organizes and directs several highly successful national and international courses, including the first-of-its-kind Advances in Pediatric Retina Course at Duke and the international Duke Fellows Advances in Vitreous Surgery Course. She is director of prestigious Duke Vitreoretinal Surgical Fellowship and director of Duke Eye Center’s Continuing Medical Education program.
Dr. Vajzovic completed her vitreoretinal fellowship training at Duke and residency training at Bascom Palmer Eye Institute in Miami, FL. While in training, she received Heed Fellowship Award, Society of Heed Fellows Award and Retina Society Research Award. She is active on the Women in Ophthalmology Board of Directors where she serves as a Chair of Clinical Trial Training Program. She is also elected member of the Retina Society, Macula Society and Club Jules Gonin Society. Dr. Vajzovic has been awarded the American Academy of Ophthalmology Achievement Award, American Society of Retina Specialists Senior Honor Award, Women in Ophthalmology Emerging Leader Award and Emerging Leader Award by Duke University School of Medicine and Duke Medical Alumni Association.
Dr. Cynthia A. Toth remains an enthusiastic supporter of the Advances in Pediatric Retina Course, co-founded by Drs. ME Hartnett, Cynthia Toth and Lejla Vajzovic in 2017. Following ACCME requirements, Dr. Toth will not participate in directing the CME portions of the event this year. She and we look forward to seeing all of the attendees this year in Santa Clara.
Bio
Dr. Cynthia Toth specializes in the evaluation and surgical treatment of vitreoretinal diseases in infants, children and adults, and in novel research resulting in the clinical application of optical coherence tomography (OCT) imaging in surgery and at the bedside. Her clinical interests and skills include the surgical treatment of macular diseases (such as, macular hole, epiretinal membrane and vitreomacular traction), retinal detachment, proliferative diabetic retinopathy, proliferative vitreoretinopathy (PVR), and retinopathy of prematurity (ROP).
Dr. Toth is a world expert in retinal imaging with optical coherence tomography (OCT) and pioneered both the first use of a research hand-held spectral domain OCT system for infant examination and the first intraoperative OCT-guided ophthalmic surgical system. For infants and children, Dr. Toth’s multidisciplinary team has demonstrated novel eye findings that are visible only with OCT imaging and that are often associated with brain disease or challenges of brain development. In surgery, Dr. Toth performed the world’s first intraoperative OCT imaging and the first swept-source OCT imaging with heads-up display during retinal surgery. With colleagues in the Duke Eye Center and in Biomedical Engineering, she perfecting such techniques. She has been repeatedly honored among the Best Doctors in America.
Dr. Toth is also professor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering in the Pratt School of Engineering. Her primary research interests are in translational research and early-application clinical trials with a focus on novel retinal imaging with spectral domain and swept source optical coherence tomography (SD and SSOCT). Dr. Toth’s Laboratory, the Duke Advanced Research in Spectral Domain/Swept Source OCT Imaging (DARSI) Laboratory centers on improving early diagnostic methods, imaging biomarkers and therapies for both age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and for retinal diseases in children. Sina Farsiu, PhD, has collaborated to provide advanced image processing for OCT with in the DARSI Laboratory. In collaboration with Joseph Izatt, PhD in Biomedical Engineering, the DARSI team is currently applying OCT to the diagnosis and care of retinal diseases and especially in microsurgery in adults and in children in several studies including NIH funded investigations.
Dr. Toth was also co-founder and has been the Director of Grading for OCT for the Duke Reading Center and has designed and directed OCT analysis for numerous multicenter clinical trials including the Comparisons of AMD Treatment Trials (CATT). The Duke Reading Center provides support in training, data acquisition, and grading for multicenter clinical trials utilizing optical coherence tomography as an outcome measure.
Dr. Toth chaired the multicenter Age Related Eye Disease Study 2 Ancillary SDOCT (A2ASDOCT) Study and has participated as site PI in the AREDS2. She also led studies of macular translocation surgery (MT360) for patients with severe AMD, along with co-investigator Dr. Sharon Freedman. Macular translocation surgery was a salvage treatment for AMD patients who lost vision due to neovascular AMD, prior to the current era of anti-Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor treatments. The surgery resulted in an auto-transplant of the retina, isolating the retina from the underlying choroidal and retinal pigment epithelial pathology. Imaging and retinal function data from those studies have contributed to teasing out events in the macula related to vision loss.
Mariam Al-Feky, MD is an adult and Pediatric vitreo-retinal consultant in both Ain Shams University and In Watany Eye Hospital and Eye Subspeciality center. She has an MD from Ain Shams University and also FRCS (Glasgow). She is a Lecturer of Ophthalmology in Ain Shams University.
Dr Atchara Amphornphruet received both her medical degree and medical science degree from the University of Chiang Mai, Thailand, where she then completed her residency. She completed a fellowship in Vitreoretinal diseases at Rajavithi Hospital, University of Rangsit in Bangkok, followed by selection as an attending at University of Rangsit and consultant in Pediatric retina at Queen Sirikit National Institute of Child Health in Bangkok. She then received a honorary grant to fund a Vitreoretinal Fellowship at Sint-Augustinus Hospital in Antwerp, a Medical Retina fellowship at Moorfield Eye Hospital NHS foundation Trust, London, and a Vitreoretinal Fellowship at New York Presbyterian Hospital -Weill Cornell Medical College in New York. She also received a certification in Clinical Electrophysiology of vision from Moorfield Eye Hospital NHS foundation Trust, London, England.Dr Amphornphruet’s clinical interests focus on diseases and surgery of retina and vitreous. Her primary research interests focus on the management of Retinopathy of Prematurity (ROP) , Familial Exudative Vitreoretinopathy (FEVR) and Polypoidal Choroidal Vasculopathy (PCV). She has participated as a co-investigator in many clinical trials.Dr Amphornphruet is a distinguished national and international speaker who has presented articles at the Asia Pacific Academy meeting, the Asia Pacific Academy of Ophthalmology, and Asia Pacific Vitreo-Retinal Society. She is currently a co- committee member in the Thai Retinal Society and a member of the Royal College of Ophthalmologists of Thailand.
Gil Binenbaum MD MSCE is Mabel Leslie Chair and Chief of Ophthalmology at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.
Frank Brodie MD MBA is a vitreoretinal surgeon and Assistant Professor of Ophthalmology at University Of California San Francisco and the San Francisco, VA Medical Center. He completed his Vitreoretinal training at Duke university in a fellowship in ophthalmic innovation at Stanford University.
Dr. Georges Caputo is an ophthalmologist specializing in pediatric ophthalmology and medico-surgical retina, head of department at the Adolphe de Rothschild Foundation Hospital since 2004, head of the competence center for rare diseases in pediatric ophthalmology (OPHTARA), head of GEFROP – French Study Group for Retinopathy of Prematurity.
His clinical activity is mainly oriented towards the management of medical and surgical retinal pathologies in children and adults, and in particular retinopathy of prematurity. He coordinates the French Study Group on Retinopathy of Prematurity.
He is the author of numerous medical publications and specialized works, in particular the report “Retinal Detachments” of the French Society of Ophthalmology or “Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus”. He is also a member of the scientific committee of the journal “Pratiques en ophtalmologie”.
Involved in university and post-university teaching, he is responsible for teaching for university degrees and regularly organizes training days focusing in particular on innovations in ophthalmology. Every semester, it welcomes many French and foreign interns in its department who want to train in the specificities of pediatric ophthalmology and vitreoretinal surgery.
Dr. Campbell obtained a bachelors degree in Physics from Davidson College, in Davidson, N.C., followed by medical school and residency at The Johns Hopkins Hospital and the Wilmer Eye Institute. He also obtained a Master’s Degree in Public Health from Johns Hopkins. Following his vitreoretinal fellowship at the Casey Eye Institute, he returned to Wilmer to serve as the Stephen J. Ryan Assistant Chief of Service for 2014 – 2015.
Dr. Campbell’s current research interests focus on utilizing technology to improve the care of patients with retinal disease, domestically and overseas. He is involved with ongoing research projects in retinopathy of prematurity, imaging in pediatric retinal disease and diabetic retinopathy, and is participating in numerous clinical trials with the Casey Eye Institute Retina Division.
R.V. Paul Chan, MD, MSc, MBA is the Department Head and the John H. Panton, MD Professor of Ophthalmology at the Illinois Eye and Ear Infirmary, University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC). His clinical practice focuses on vitreoretinal surgery, with an expertise in pediatric retinal disease. Dr. Chan received his BA from the University of Pennsylvania, MD from the Temple University School of Medicine, MSc from Weill Cornell Medical College (WCMC), and MBA from the University of Chicago’s Booth School of Business. After completing Ophthalmology residency at the New York-Presbyterian Hospital of WCMC, he went on to a Fellowship in Vitreoretinal Surgery at the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary at Harvard Medical School. Dr. Chan spent nine years on faculty at WCMC, as Director of the Retina Service and Vitreoretinal Fellowship, before moving to UIC. Dr. Chan previously served as the Vice Chair for both Clinical Affairs and Global Ophthalmology in the Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences at UIC and is a global leader in pediatric blindness prevention and retinopathy of prematurity (ROP). His primary research interests focus on utilizing new technology and imaging techniques to better evaluate and manage children with retinal disease. He has authored over 200 peer reviewed articles and has received grant funding by the NIH, the NSF, and a number of charitable foundations. He is a core team member of the Imaging and Informatics for ROP (i-ROP) consortium and leads the Global Education Network for ROP (GEN-ROP). Together, they have developed tele-education and telemedicine programs, and have established clinical, teaching, and research collaborations in Asia, Latin America, and Africa. Dr. Chan also serves as a consultant for programs sponsored by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), Orbis International, and Helen Keller International (HKI).
Dr. Cabrera is a UW Associate Professor of Ophthalmology and Chief of Ophthalmology at Seattle Children’s. A graduate of Stanford University and the University of California at San Francisco School of Medicine, she completed her internship at Cabrini Medical Center- Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York, followed by residency in ophthalmology at the University of California at San Francisco. She completed both a clinical and research fellowship in pediatric ophthalmology and strabismus at the Duke Eye Center.
Dr. Capone is an internationally recognized clinician, surgeon, and educator specializing in pediatric vitreoretinal diseases, complicated retinal detachment, ocular oncology, and macular disease. Born in Rhode Island, Dr. Capone obtained his undergraduate and medical school training at Brown University. He completed an ophthalmology residency at the University of Pittsburgh Eye & Ear Hospital before a vitreoretinal fellowship at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia. Upon completing his training, he joined the Emory faculty and rose to tenured Associate Professor. He is currently a partner at Associated Retinal Consultants (ARC) in Royal Oak, MI, a Professor of Ophthalmology at Oakland University William Beaumont Hospital School of Medicine, and Chief Clinical Officer for EyeCare Partners. He is also President of the Pediatric Retinal Research Foundation, immediate past Co-President of ARC, and was the founding Chairman of EyeCare Partners’ Medical Executive Board. Dr. Capone has authored or co-authored over 300 publications in peer-reviewed medical journals, book chapters, and publications from clinical trials. He is a scientific reviewer for the leading journals within ophthalmology and retina and an editorial board member of the Journal of the American Association for Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus. As an innovator, Dr. Capone has several co-assigned patents, has engaged in surgical instrument design and software and biopharmaceutical start-ups, and serves on several scientific advisory boards. He has been dedicated to medical education at all levels throughout his career and has served as Director of the Fellowship in Vitreoretinal Diseases and Surgery at Emory University and ARC. He has trained or hosted as visiting scholars most of the current domestic and international thought leaders in pediatric retinal diseases and surgery. He is a member of numerous professional organizations (AAO, ARVO, Retina Society, Macula Society, ASRS), served on the American Society of Retina Specialists (ASRS) Board of Directors for over a decade, and is currently Secretary of the Executive Committee of the Retina Society, and Dr. Capone is consistently named among the “Best Doctors in America” and has been recognized by the AAO and the ASRS with Honor Awards and Senior Honor Awards, has received the AMA’s Physician’s Recognition Award, and the AAO’s Senior Achievement Award, Special Recognition Award and Life Achievement Honor Award.
Dr. Xi Chen is a clinician scientist in pediatric and adult retinal diseases at Duke Eye Center. She is interested in using advanced bedside imaging to study human foveal and retinal development in infants, as well as in infants with retinopathy of prematurity.
I am a clinician-scientist specializing in pediatric ophthalmology, with a subspecialty in genetic eye diseases. I direct the Electrophysiology service in the Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, and utilize rodent and pig electroretinography in my research. For 15 years I did primarily clinical research and medical/surgical patient care; I was Chair of Pediatric Ophthalmology at The Children’s Hospital, Denver, and directed Pediatric Ophthalmology Postdoctoral Fellowship programs. In 2008 I was recruited back to the University of Iowa to start a pediatric genetic eye disease service and to be a co-investigator in the Phase III human gene therapy trial for RPE65-associated Leber congenital amaurosis. This trial, which resulted in the first FDA approved ocular gene therapy, is proof of concept that “untreatable” causes of childhood blindness are treatable and forms the basis for my work in studying mechanisms and developing treatments in animal models, and participating in human clinical treatment trials. My clinical practice is now limited to pediatric genetic eye disorders, especially inherited retinal degenerations. I direct a research laboratory utilizing mouse models of BBS10 and Juvenile X-linked retinoschisis to study disease mechanisms and develop treatments.
Dr. Dumitrescu, Clinical Associate Professor at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, specializes in Pediatric Ophthalmology, Adult Strabismus and Pediatric inherited eye disorders. She received the newly endowed professorship named the Chakraborty Family Professorship in Pediatric Genetic Retinal Diseases. Dr. Dumitrescu graduated from “Victor Babes” University of Medicine and Pharmacy Medical School, followed by clinical and research fellowships at the University of Iowa: Molecular Ophthalmology and Glaucoma Postdoctoral Research Scholar, Pediatric Ophthalmology and Adult Strabismus and Pediatric Ophthalmic Genetics. She went on to OSF Saint Francis Medical Center, University of Illinois College of Medicine for an internal medicine preliminary year internship and Ophthalmology residency at the University of Kansas Department of Ophthalmology.
G. Baker Hubbard, MD is the Thomas M. Aaberg Professor of Ophthalmology within Emory University’s School of Medicine. He has served at the Emory Eye Center since 2000 and currently holds the position of Vice-Chair for Clinical Operations. Additionally, he is Director of the Retina Service and is past Director of the Vitreoretinal Surgery Fellowship at Emory.
Dr. Harper was born in Nashville, Tennessee, and later attended St. Stephen’s Episcopal High School in Austin. After graduating with honors from Vanderbilt University with a degree in molecular biology, he earned his medical degree from the University of Oklahoma in 1988. Upon completing his residency at Charity Hospital, Louisiana State University in New Orleans, he held a two-year fellowship at the prestigious Casey Eye Institute, University of Oregon in Portland, where he received specialty training in medical and surgical retina, as well as retinopathy of prematurity. He joined Austin Retina in 1995.
With expertise that includes macular hole and retinal detachment surgery, retinopathy of prematurity and macular degeneration, Dr. Harper is a nationally recognized speaker on the management of retinopathy of prematurity and on the role of nutrition in macular degeneration. He is actively involved in research in both pharmacological and nutritional therapies for the treatment and prevention of macular degeneration. He has also served as an investigator for numerous clinical trials.
Dr. Harper is a consultant at the University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio and at the city’s University Hospital, where he teaches residents and provides vitreoretinal care for infants with retinopathy of prematurity. Passionate about bringing quality ophthalmic care to developing countries, Dr. Harper travels worldwide teaching and performing surgery with local physicians. Recent travels have included trips to Haiti with Vanderbilt University Eye Project, and to Lanzhou, China, with Project Orbis, the world’s only flying eye hospital. His travels and contributions have received local and national recognition. In 2016, he founded smallworldvision.org, an organization created to eliminate preventable blindness in premature babies born in countries outside of the United States. His passion is retinopathy of prematurity and loves to take care of babies knowing that he can preserve their vision for 80 years.
Dr. Harper is a member of the American Academy of Ophthalmology, Association of Research in Vision and Ophthalmology, Texas Medical Association and the Travis County Medical Society. He also served as Chief of Ophthalmology at Brackenridge Hospital from 2005-2008 and is the current chief of Ophthalmology at Ascension Medical Centers in Austin. Each year Texas Monthly magazine has included him in “Best Doctors in Texas.” Outside of the office, Dr. Harper enjoys gardening, biking, and spending time with his wife, Ruthie, and their four dogs, Nana, Ramzes, Rico, and Blakey.
I am a clinical professor of ophthalmology at the John A. Moran Eye Center. I practice comprehensive ophthalmology with a special interest in ocular ultrasound. I have written a number of articles for scientific journals, several book chapters, and a textbook with a second edition now in process. I am on the executive board for the American Association of Standardized Echographers and the International Society for Diagnostic Ultrasound. I am also actively involved in humanitarian eye care in developing countries and have participated in research projects in these areas
Dr. Rachel Huckfeldt is an Assistant Professor of Ophthalmology at Harvard Medical School and a clinician-scientist at Massachusetts Eye and Ear (MEE). She completed her MD and PhD training at Washington University in St Louis with PhD research focused on retinal development. After finishing an ophthalmology residency at Mass Eye and Ear, Dr. Huckfeldt conducted postdoctoral research focused on novel therapeutics in the lab of Dr. Jean Bennett at the University of Pennsylvania followed by clinical fellowships in medical retina (University of Iowa) and inherited retinal disorders (MEE). Dr. Huckfeldt’s clinical practice is currently focused on the care of individuals with inherited retinal disorders. She is dedicated to bringing new therapies to individuals with these conditions, and she is the principal investigator for MEE’s participation in multiple clinical studies including first-in-human clinical trials of genetic therapies. Dr. Huckfeldt is the director of the Inherited Retinal Degenerations fellowship at MEE. She is also the Co-Chair-Elect (July 2023-June 2022) and Co-Chair (July 2023-) of the Foundation Fighting Blindness Consortium.
Dr. Amy Hutchinson is Professor and Director of Ophthalmology at Emory University School of Medicine and Director of Ophthalmology at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta. She specializes in screening and treatment of retinopathy of prematurity. She is an active participant in ROP research.
Physician in practice in the San Francisco Bay Area. Vice chairman of the department of ophthalmology at the California Pacific Medical Center (CPMC). Vitreoretinal fellowship program director, West Coast Retina/CPMC. Program director of the American Society of Retina Specialists. Member of the Jack McGovern Coats Disease Foundation Advisory Board.
Hiroyuki Kondo, MD, PhD, is the professor and chairman of Department Ophthalmology, University of Occupational and Environmental Health, Japan, and a Visiting professor at Fukuoka University, Fukuoka, Japan. He completed MD at Chiba University, Chiba, Japan, a residency at Toranomon Hospital, Tokyo, and a vitreoretinal fellowship at Fukuoka University. After completing the research fellowship at Bascom Palmer Institute in Miami, he was an Associate professor of Fukuoka University. His specialty is pediatric and adult vitreoretinal surgery and ophthalmic genetics. He was the recipient of the 1st Japanese Association of Pediatric Ophthalmology Award for the work on phenotype-genotype correlation in familial exudative vitreoretinopathy.
After graduating Osaka University Graduate School of Medicine, he finished residency program at Department of Ophthalmology, Osaka University. After finishing a vitreoretinal fellowship at Osaka National Hospital, he joined a research fellowship program at University of Michigan. After coming back to Osaka University as an assistant professor, besides busy clinical work as a vitreoretinal surgeon, he continued basic research on RPE cell physiology, and has published so far several papers in prestigious basic science journals such as The Journal of Physiology, Glia, and IOVS. In addition, he has published over 150 clinical study papers. He has become a professor and chair at Department of Ophthalmology, Kindai University Faculty of Medicine since 2018. Currently, his main interests are surgical treatment of various vitreoretinal disorders, including pediatric retinal diseases, and basic research of pharmacological treatment of ocular neovascular diseases.
Alice T. Lyon, MD is the Leonard and Bernice Lavin Endowed Ophthalmology Research Professor, Professor of Ophthalmology at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine and is the Director of the Retina Service. She received her undergraduate and medical degrees from the University of Chicago. Dr. Lyon completed ophthalmology residency at Northwestern University, followed by retina fellowship training at the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary, Harvard Medical School, Retina Associates, and Postgraduate Research Fellowship at the Schepens Eye Research Institute. Dr. Lyon has been on the full-time faculty at Northwestern University since 1993. Her clinical expertise is in adult and pediatric vitreoretinal diseases and surgery. She is very active in clinical research as principal investigator for multiple clinical research trials, for pediatric and adult vitreoretinal diseases and surgery. She serves on Data Safety and Monitoring Boards for clinical trials in retina. She is a dedicated teacher at all levels of medical education and has served as Director of Medical Student Education, Department of Ophthalmology at Northwestern University for 10 years, Director of The Chicago Curriculum in Ophthalmology since 1993 (for Chicago area Ophthalmology residents) and Director of the Retinal Fellowships at Northwestern for 14 years.
Hai Lu, MD/Professor Gender: Male Chair of Pediatric Retina, Beijing Tongren Hospital, Capital University of Medical Science, Beijing, CHINA Academy position Vice-chairman of Chinese Ocular Trauma Society Honor: Dr. Arthur M. Sackler prize for Chinese Doctor of Year 1999 Top 10 Health Guardians prize of Capital Beijing 2017 Dr. Hai Lu has been engaged in surgical retina for nearly 30 years. He is one of the most important retina surgeons in China, and one of the pioneers in combined phaco and vitrectomy surgery. He has made great efforts to promote the state-of-art vitreoretinal surgery in China. With the great passion, he has been working very hard to explore pediatric retinal surgery and has become one of the leading pediatric retina surgeons in China. He has been one of the mostly invited Chinese speakers by different international ophthalmic meetings. He has been involved in a number of medical missions throughout African, Asian and Caribbean countries to provide free eye surgeries.
Dr. Maria Ana Martinez-Castellanos is an Assistant Professor of Pediatric Retina, of the Retina Service at the Association to Prevent Blindness in Mexico APEC, Hospital “Luis Sanchez Bulnes” from the National Autonomous University of Mexico UNAM. She serves as pediatric retina specialist at General Hospital “Belisario Dominguez” in Mexico City and Perinatal Hospital “Monica Pretelini” in Toluca, Mexico. Dr. Martinez-Castellanos is a mexican board certified ophthalmologist whose clinical practice involves the surgical and medical management of adult and pediatric vitreo-retinal disease.
Dr. Martinez-Castellanos received her MD from the Autonomous University of the State of Mexico UAEM in Toluca, Mexico. After completing her Ophthalmology residency at Central Military Hospital from the University of the Mexican Army and Air Force UDEFA, she went on to a Fellowship in Vitreoretinal Surgery at Association to Prevent Blindness in Mexico APEC, Hospital “Luis Sanchez Bulnes” and UNAM. Dr. Martinez-Castellanos then joined the Retina Service as Assistant Professor of Pediatric Retina.
I am an ophthalmologist dedicated to the study of retinal diseases in children and adults with special passion for genetics and inherited eye disorders. I am an Assistant Professor of Ophthalmology, Vitreoretinal Diseases and Surgery with the Duke Eye Center.
I am an Associate Professor in the Department of Ophthalmology at the University of Colorado School of Medicine. I practice medical and surgical Adult and Pediatric Retina at University of Colorado Health and Children’s Hospital Colorado. I lead our Inherited Retinal Disease and Ocular Genetics service with a research interest in cell-based retinal stem cell transplantation.
Dr. Darius M. Moshfeghi is Chief of the Retina Division and Professor at the Horngren Family Vitreoretinal Center, Byers Eye Institute, Department of Ophthalmology, at the Stanford University School of Medicine. Dr. Moshfeghi received training in biomedical engineering as an undergraduate at Tulane University in New Orleans, followed by medical school, internship, and ophthalmology residency also at Tulane. Subsequently he performed fellowships in ocular oncology and orbital disease, followed by a 2-year vitreoretinal surgery fellowship at the Cole Eye Institute of the Cleveland Clinic Foundation. He was introduced to the concept of wide-angle imaging and its potential for telemedicine in pediatric retinal disease while treating patients with retinoblastoma at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee. He is an internationally-recognized expert in pediatric vitreoretinal disease and pediatric retinal telemedicine. He has dedicated his career to using telemedicine and digital technology to prevent blindness in children.
He founded the Stanford University Network for Diagnosis of Retinopathy of Prematurity (SUNDROP) program in 2005, and today it remains the oldest and largest telemedicine screening program for ROP in the United States. He has developed a national telemedicine screening program for Pediatrix with Stanford University for ROP called TELEROP. He has worked with industry both in a consultative and creative-founder role to develop wide-angle imaging camera technology as well as deep learning classifier platforms for the identification of disease in healthy term newborn infants.
He is actively involved in entrepreneurial activities, serving as a founder and a director of Pr3vent, Placid0, dSentz, and Promisight. He is actively engaged in promoting telemedicine to expand access of eye care and vision for all. He currently serves on the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) Telemedicine Working Group and previously sat on the AAO’s ROP Telemedicine Task Force Panel. Additionally he is a founding member of the Collaborative Community on Ophthalmic Imaging a collaboration between stake holders and the FDA which was established by Mark Blumenkranz here at Stanford University.
He has collaborated extensively with the pharmaceutical industry in oversight (Alcon and Novartis Data Safety Monitoring Committees for Brolucizumab, Novartis Safety Review Committee Brolucizumab), steering committees (Regeneron Butterfleye, Bayer Photographic Committee for Firefleye, Iconic Therapeutics, Pykus), and drug development (Alexion).
Finally, Dr. Moshfeghi is interested in medical training and mentoring of individuals pursuing careers in medicine and biomedical spaces. He was the founding director of the Stanford Vitreoretinal Surgery and Medical Disease Fellowship and remains actively engaged in the day-to-day training of the fellows and works extensively with medical students (and has served as a MedScholars mentor for many students) and visiting fellows.
Prithvi Mruthyunjaya, MD, MHS is an Professor of Ophthalmology and Director of the Ocular Oncology Service at the Byers Eye Institute at Stanford Univeristy. He is a vitreoretinal surgeon who has focused his clinical and academic career to the care of patients with eye cancer. He has published extensively in the field of ocular oncology, ophthalmic imaging, and complex retinal surgery. He has received the Senior Honor Award by the American Society of Retina Specialists and the Senior Achievment Award by the AAO. He is a 2022 inductee in the Global Retinal Hall of Fame. He has been named the recipient of the 2023 Crystal Apple teaching by the American Society of Retina Specialist, a reflection of his involvement in vitreoretinal fellow education on various levels. He joined the faculty of the Byers Eye Institute where he has established a state-of-the-art ocular oncology service at Stanford University in Palo Alto, CA. His passion includes teaching the next generation of students, residents and fellows and currently serves as the retinal surgery fellowship director at Stanford.
Aaron Nagiel, MD, PhD is an Assistant Professor of Ophthalmology at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, affiliated with the USC Roski Eye Institute/Keck School of Medicine in Los Angeles, California. As a surgeon specializing in retinal disorders of childhood and adolescence, he complements this clinical expertise with an active laboratory and translational research program. He is a recipient of numerous grants and awards including the Heed Ophthalmic Foundation Fellowship, the Ronald G. Michels Fellowship Foundation Award, a National Eye Institute Clinical Scientist Training Grant (K08), and a Research to Prevent Blindness Career Development Award. Dr. Nagiel earned his bachelor’s degree from Harvard University summa cum laude, and then underwent combined MD and PhD training at Cornell University and The Rockefeller University in New York City. After an internship at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, Dr. Nagiel completed both ophthalmology residency and vitreoretinal fellowship at the Stein Eye Institute at UCLA.
Maureen Neitz is an American vision scientist whose research includes work on color vision, gene therapy, and the prevention of nearsightedness. She holds the Ray H. Hill Endowed Chair in Ophthalmology at the University of Washington where she also serves as the director of the Graduate Program in Neuroscience. Maureen is married to and works with Jay Neitz, also a vision scientist. They have been successfully collaborating in studies of the visual system from genes to behavior since 1986. They successfully translated discoveries at the bench to therapeutic interventions for nearsightedness. Their work on gene therapy to “cure” color blindness was listed in Time magazine as #3 in the top 10 most important scientific discoveries of 2009.
Senior Vitreoretinal Surgeon at the Ghent University Hospital , pediatric and adult retina & cataract surgeon, board member of the Retina Surgeon of Belgium and of the Belgian Retina Society , special interest in robotics surgery and subretinal injection techniques
Jay Neitz holds the Bishop Professorship in Ophthalmology at the University of Washington in Seattle, USA. He works with his wife, Maureen, to answer questions about the biological mechanisms responsible for vision. They are interested in how neural circuits process signals initiated in the cone photoreceptors to provide vision, control axial growth of the eye during development, and modulate activity rhythms and mood. They use a multidisciplinary approach that includes molecular genetics, electrophysiology, light and electron microscopy, and psychophysics.
My job as a physician is to fix the problems that can be solved, prevent disease whenever possible, to bring humanity to health care, and to ease suffering for every patient no matter the outcome.
In my spare time, I enjoy time with my wife, projects with the kids, travel, the garden, nordic and alpine skiing, and cycling.
Margaret “Maggie” Overstreet, O.D. was born and raised in Birmingham, Alabama. She received her undergraduate degree from Baylor University before returning home to train at the University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Optometry where she earned her Doctor of Optometry. She then furthered her clinical training by completing a Pediatric Residency where she held an academic appointment and saw patients at The State University of New York College of Optometry and within New York City Health + Hospitals. She is currently an Assistant Professor of Ophthalmology at OHSU’s Casey Eye Institute where she enjoys seeing patients and working with all levels of trainees. Her current academic interests include myopia management, pediatric contact lenses, and discovering the role of social determinants of health in pediatric eye care.
Dr. Pardue is Professor and Vice Chair of Research in the Department of Ophthalmology at Emory University and a Senior Research Career Scientist at the Atlanta VA Healthcare System. Dr. Pardue received a Bachelor of Science degree in zoology from the University of Wyoming and her Doctorate in vision science and biology at the University of Waterloo. Her post-doctorate training was in visual electrophysiology at Loyola School of Medicine and Hines VA Hospital in Chicago. Dr. Pardue has been part of the intramural research program at the Department of Veterans Affairs for her entire career. Her lab is focused on clinically relevant treatments for retinal disease that can make a difference in the quality of life of patients. Currently, Dr. Pardue’s laboratory is developing novel screening and treatment strategies for early-stage diabetic retinopathy, elucidating the retinal mechanisms of myopia, and developing neuroprotective strategies for retinal disease. She is moving several pre-clinical studies to the clinic to create novel treatment strategies for patients. She has been named a Gold Fellow for the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (FARVO) and a Fellow of the American Institute of Medical and Biological Engineers (FAIMBE).
Dr. Patel is an Assistant Professor of Ophthalmology at Harvard Medical School. He is the Director of Pediatric Retina and Associate Director of the Vitreoretinal Surgery at Mass. Eye and Ear and Mass General Hospital, as well as Director of Pediatric Vitreoretinal Surgery at Boston Children’s Hospital. Research interests include, outcomes and risk factors of retinopathy of prematurity, as well as microvascular imaging in pediatric sickle cell retinopathy and maculopathy.
A Minnesota native, Dr. Quiram received both a Ph.D. in Molecular Neuroscience and her MD degree from the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN. She completed her residency in Ophthalmology at the University of California-Los Angeles and her Vitreoretinal Fellowship at Associated Retinal Consultants at William Beaumont Hospital in Royal Oak, MI. Dr. Quiram joined RCM ( VitreoRetinal Surgery) in 2007 and has subspecialty interest in Pediatric Retinal Diseases. She is a member of the American Academy of Ophthalmology, ASRS and ARVO.
Dr. Hugo Quiroz-Mercado was Director of the Retina department at Asociacion para Evitar la Ceguera en Mexico (APEC) for more than 20 years—the founder of the Experimental Surgery Lab at the same Institution. Former Director of Ophthalmology at Denver Health Medical Center and Full-time Professor of Ophthalmology at School of Medicine University of Colorado Denver. Published papers on neovascular factors in ROP and pioneers in anti-VEGF treatment for ROP. Currently Chairman of Translational Research at APEC.
Dr Aparna Ramasubramanian is an ocular oncologist and pediatric ophthalmologist practicing adult and pediatric ocular oncology. She did her medical school in India, ophthalmology residency in Indiana University and has done fellowship in ocular oncology at Wills Eye Institute, Philadelphia and a pediatric ophthalmology fellowship at Children’s Hospital, Boston. She is the author of the textbook “Retinoblastoma”. She received the Knights Templar Research Award for her research on developing nanoparticle melphalan for intravitreal injection. She received the American Academy of Ophthalmology Achievement Award in 2018.
Dr. Recchia is a graduate of Duke University School of Medicine and completed his residency at Wills Eye Hospital, a research fellowship in retinal angiogenesis at University of Pennsylvania, and a clinical fellowship in vitreoretinal surgery at William Beaumont Hospital. Following nearly a decade on the faculty of Vanderbilt University Medical Center (where he served as chief of the retina division and director of the vitreoretinal fellowship), he joined Tennessee Retina, a private practice centered in Nashville, Tennessee. He maintains a busy pediatric and adult vitreoretinal referral practice serving much of the Southeast of the U.S., with over 800 pediatric retina encounters annually. Dr. Recchia has held leadership positions with AAO and ARVO and has been recognized with multiple awards for excellence in resident teaching and original research, named to Best Doctors in America, and received Honor Awards from the AAO and ASRS.
Dr. Robert A. Sisk is a Board-Certified Diplomate of the American Board of Ophthalmology and a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons. His peers selected him as one of The Best Doctors in America. Dr. Sisk is actively engaged in clinical research and ophthalmic education. Dr. Sisk is a principal investigator or co-investigator for many FDA-regulated investigational drug trials and studies for identification and treatment of genetic eye diseases. Dr. Sisk performs cell therapy and gene therapy procedures, including the FDA-approved gene therapy, Luxturna®. He is an Associate Professor of the Department of Ophthalmology at the University of Cincinnati, where he educates residents and fellows in vitreoretinal surgery. He is the author of numerous publications in the peer-reviewed ophthalmic literature and presents regularly at international clinical and scientific meetings. Dr. Sisk serves adults and older children at the CEI offices in Edgewood, Kentucky and Blue Ash, Ohio. He provides care for neonates, infants, and young children at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital, a top 3 hospital nationally, where he is Director of Pediatric Vitreoretinal Surgery and Director of Ophthalmic Genetics. While he routinely manages all forms of medical and surgical diseases of the retina in adults, Dr. Sisk has specialized expertise in pediatric retinal surgery, retinal dystrophies, and retinal electrophysiology.
Andreas Stahl studied Medicine at the University of Freiburg and Imperial College London. He was Research Fellow at Harvard Medical School from 2008 – 2010 and received his European Board Certificate in Ophthalmology in 2012. Since 2019, he is Chair and Head of the Department of Ophthalmology at University Medicine Greifswald, Germany. His main research interests are retinal disease, particularly retinopathy of prematurity (ROP), and AI-assisted diagnosis and prediction of retinal disease.
Adrienne W. Scott, M.D, is a retina specialist and associate professor of ophthalmology at the Wilmer Eye Institute’s locations in Baltimore and Bel Air, Maryland. Dr. Scott treats patients across the spectrum of vitreoretinal medical and surgical diseases, including macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy, retinal detachments and more.
Dr. Scott received her doctor of medicine degree from Drexel University College of Medicine in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and completed her ophthalmology residency at the Duke University Eye Center.
During her residency, Dr. Scott received the Ocular Innovation Award, the K. Alexander Dastgheib Eye Surgery Award and the Edward K. Isbey, Jr. M.D. Award for clinical excellence. She remained at the Duke Eye Center to complete her two-year fellowship training in vitreoretinal surgery prior to joining the Wilmer faculty.
Jonathan Sears is a physician scientist who as an undergraduate at Yale College in the lab iof Gary Brudvig, discovered that Photosystem II in plant chloroplasts could oxidize primary amines. While a student at Yale University School of Medicine, Dr. Sears was trained in Molecular Biology under Richard Flavell and identified the protective epitope of the Lyme Disease vaccine. He currently is a Staff vitreoretinal surgeon at the Cleveland Clinic, where he specializes in pediatric retinal surgery and studies the molecular basis of hypoxia inducible factor stabilization in the prevention of oxygen induced pathologies of the severely premature infant.
Michael is a pediatric retina specialist in Chicago. He continues the commitment to the craft of vitreoretinal surgery modeled by his mentors Charles Schepens, Hal Freeman, and Tatsuo Hirose. After fellowship he was further inspired by Relja Zivojnovic. He practiced at UIC full time for 17 years and then continued at Retina Consultants, LTD. For 30 years his special interest has been challenging pediatric retinal diseases and this has allowed him to contribute to the understanding and management of ROP, Stickler Syndrome, FEVR, PFV, Coats and Norrie diseases. The interactions with colleagues in the community of pediatric retina specialists remain a source of joy and inspiration.
Julia Shulman, MD is a board-certified ophthalmologist and retina specialist. Dr. Shulman graduated from Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York. She completed her residency in ophthalmology at New York Eye and Ear Infirmary, where she was chief resident, and completed her retina fellowship at Moran Eye Center at the University of Utah.
Dr. Julia Shulman has published book chapters on Cryptococcosis and Corticosteroids in Diagnosis and Treatment of Uveitis, 2nd Edition, Retinopathy of Prematurity: Current Understanding Based on Clinical Trials in Pediatric Retina, and Trans Pars-Plana Sub-Retinal Fine Needle Biopsy in Surgical Mangement of Intraocular Inflammation and Infection. She is the author of AAO’s Focal Points module on retinopathy of prematurity, published in 2015.
Dr. Shulman has presented at international meetings including American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) and American Society of Retina Specialists. She has been an invited speaker at the Retina Society and the American Society of Pediatric Retina Specialists.
Dr. Shulman is actively involved in teaching and is currently chair of the department of ophthalmology at Jamaica Hospital Medical Center. Additionally, Dr. Shulman screens and treats premature infants with retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) at Jamaica Hospital.
Dr. Julia Shulman is fluent in English, French, Hebrew, Russian, and Spanish.
Paul A. Sieving, M.D., Ph.D. Dr. Sieving is known for genetic, mechanistic, and translational studies of human inherited retinal diseases. He developed the first human therapy trial for RP patients with Ciliary Neurotrophic Factor (CNTF) in 2005, and he initiated the first human gene therapy trial for patients with X-linked Retinoschisis, with trial results published in 2018. Dr. Sieving is the Neil and MJ Kelly Professor of Ophthalmology at the University of California at Davis, School of Medicine, and he is the Founding Director of the Center for Ocular Regenerative Therapy at UC Davis. He did graduate study in nuclear physics at Yale University, attended Yale Law School, and obtained an MD and PhD in Bioengineering from the University of Illinois. He was previously Director of the National Eye Institute (NEI) at NIH for 18 years. At NEI he launched the “Audacious Goals Initiative in Regenerative Medicine,” a national translational program to understand the biology of cell regeneration and develop therapeutic technologies to replace photoreceptors and retinal ganglion cells lost from disease. Dr. Sieving is an elected member of the US National Academy of Medicine, and the German National Academy of Sciences.
Specialist in ophthalmology. Fellow of the European Board of Ophthalmology. I have major interest in pediatric ophthalmology, especially ROP. My research interest is within retinal diseases, especially ROP and DR. Currently, I am diving into research in retinal diseases with OMIC technologies, AI, and bioinformatics.
Dr. Irena Tsui, MD works in Los Angeles, CA as an ophthalmology specialist and has 19 years experience.
She is board certified in ophthalmology and graduated from UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA / SCHOOL OF MEDICINE in 2004. Dr. Tsui has has worked on more claims relating to retinoschisis and retinal cysts than other providers in the area. At present, Dr. Tsui has received an average rating of 4.6 from patients and has been reviewed 11 times. She is affiliated with Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center. She is accepting new patients. Dr. Tsui also speaks Chinese. Dr. Tsui practices at Jules Stein Eye Institute UCLA in Los Angeles, CA and has additional offices in Arcadia, CA.
Dr Anand Vinekar, is the Founder and Program Director of KIDROP, a tele-ROP program in India which was founded in 2007. This program is regarded as one of the largest telemedicine initiatives in the world addressing the challenges of ROP management in unserved areas in rural India, and has mentored several such programs across the world. KIDROP serves over 145 NICUs, and its model has been validated by the CDC guidelines and UNDP as an ideal model for middle-income countries. He is a member of the national task force for ROP in India and has served as an advisor for ROP screening protocols for India and three other nations. He served on the ICROP-3 committee, ORBIS, Queens Diamond Jubilee Trust, IAPB and UNICEF committees. He has published over 100+ publications, 26 chapters and one textbook. He has won several distinguished awards, including the Innovator of the Year by Govt of India, KR Datta, P. SivaReddy, Col Rangachari, ET Selvam and JM Pahwa for his contribution to the field. His areas of interest include telemedicine, affordable technology development, innovative infant imaging, artificial intelligence and tear biomarkers.
Wei-Chi Wu, MD, PhD, is currently the Professor of Ophthalmology at Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Linkou, Taoyuan, Taiwan. After he finished his PhD at Chang Gung University, he completed his fellowship and Post-Doctorate Research with Dr. Michael Trese at William Beaumont Hospital, Royal Oak, Michigan, USA. His main interest of research is in the field of pediatric retina, including retinopathy of prematurity, familiar exudative vitreoretinopathy, Coats disease, abusive head injury, and pediatric retinal detachment. He is currently the editor of Translational Vision Science & Technology and American Journal of Ophthalmology Case Report. He has authored for more than 320 papers, 7 book chapters, and edited one textbook. He has won many awards for his contribution in the research of retinal disease. His recent awards included the Golden Paper Award, International College of Surgeon (2023), The 1st Asia Pacific Eye 100 Most Influential Ophthalmologists 2022, World Top 2% Scientists Award (2022), Excellent Paper Award of Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan (2022), The 18th National Innovation Award (2021), The 14th Asia-Pacific Vitreo-retina Society (APVRS) Congress Best Abstract Awards (2021), The American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) Achievement Award (2021), Golden Paper Award, International College of Surgeon (2020), Excellent Paper Award of Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan (2019), Taiwan Macula Society Academic Award, Taipei, Taiwan (2018), Prof Rajvardhan Azad Oration Award, Raipur, India (2018).