Invited speakers
| Pravin U. Dugel, MD, Program Chair
Brian Leonard, MD, Program Co-Chair
Paul Beaumont, MB BS
R.V. Paul Chan, MD
Carl C. Claes, MD
Stuart C. Coupland, PhD
Michael Dollin, MD
Tarek S. Hassan, MD
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Derek Y. Kunimoto, MD
William F. Mieler, MD
Samir Patel, MD
Sanduk Ruit, MD
Taiji Sakamoto, MD, PhD
Gaurav K. Shah, MD
Geoffrey Tabin, MD |
PROGRAM CHAIR
 Pravin U. Dugel, MD
Managing Partner, Retinal Consultants of Arizona
Founding Member, Spectra Eye Institute
Clinical Associate Professor, Doheny Eye Institute (USC)
Phoenix, Arizona
Dr. Dugel graduated summa cum laude from Columbia University and attended UCLA School of Medicine. He completed a residency in ophthalmology at the Doheny Eye Institute, a medical retina fellowship at the Bascom Palmer Eye Institute and a surgical retina fellowship at the Doheny Eye Institute. In 1994, he joined Retinal Consultants of Arizona. See full bio
PROGRAM CO-CHAIR
 Brian Leonard, MD
Professor of Ophthalmology
University of Ottawa Eye Institute
Ottawa, Canada
Executive Director
The Sally Letson Foundation
Dr. Leonard is a vitreoretinal surgeon at the University of Ottawa Eye Institute. He was the Eye Institute's founding director and led its planning and development team, from conception to construction. He is also professor of ophthalmology and past-chair of the Department of Ophthalmology, University of Ottawa Medical School. See full bio
 Paul Beaumont, MB BS, FRACS, FRANZCO, MEDICAL RETINA
Founding director, Macular Degeneration Foundation
Retina & Vitreous Centre
Sydney, Australia
 R.V. Paul Chan, MD, FACS
St. Giles Associate Professor of Pediatric Retina
Director of the Retina Service
Weill Cornell Eye Associates
New York, New York
Dr. Chan is the St. Giles associate professor of pediatric retina and director of the Retina Service at Weill Cornell Medical College. His clinical expertise is in adult and pediatric retina, specifically retinopathy of prematurity. His research focuses on using new technology and imaging techniques to evaluate and manage pediatric retinal disease. See full bio
 Carl C. Claes, MD
Head of Vitreoretinal Department
Sint Augustinus Hospital
Antwerp, Belgium
Dr. Claes practises in Antwerp and has an international reputation for surgery of complicated retinal detachments, trauma, retinopathy of prematurity, proliferative vitreoretinopathy, macular translocations, pigment epithelial transplantations, and pediatric cases. He performs 1000 surgical interventions a year. See full bio
 Stuart C. Coupland, PhD
Associate Professor
Cellular and Molecular Medicine
University of Ottawa Eye Institute
Ottawa, Canada
Dr. Coupland's clinical research interests include the investigation of structural and functional correlates in age related macular degeneration and diabetic retinopathy using multifocal electroretinography and optical coherence tomography imaging techniques. Recently, his research has extended into assessing the sensitivity and specificity of multifocal ERG and OCT in early detection of chloroquine/ hydroxychlorine retinal toxicity. See full bio
 Michael Dollin, MD, FRCSC
Assistant Professor
University of Ottawa Eye Institute
Ottawa, Canada
Dr. Dollin has trained under world leaders in medical and surgical retina and has performed over 1000 retina surgeries. He has been co-investigator on several major multicentre clinical trials and presented his own research at large national academic meetings. He is excited to be returning to Ottawa to join the faculty at the University of Ottawa Eye Institute. See full bio
 Tarek S. Hassan, MD
President-Elect of the American Society of Retina Specialists
Professor of Ophthalmology, Director of the Vitreoretinal Fellowship
Associated Retinal Consultants
Royal Oak, Michigan
Dr. Hassan is a professor of ophthalmology at Oakland University
William Beaumont School of Medicine and senior partner and director of the Vitreoretinal Fellowship Training Program at Associated Retinal Consultants in Royal Oak, Michigan. He is currently the president of the American Society of Retina Specialists. See full bio
 Derek Y. Kunimoto, MD, JD
Founding member and President of the Vit-Buckle Society
Partner, Retinal Consultants of Arizona
Mesa, Arizona
Dr. Kunimoto is a partner with Retinal Consultants of Arizona. He completed a 2-year vitreoretinal fellowship at Wills Eye Hospital, and was recognized as both a Heed Foundation Fellow and a Ronald G. Michels Fellow. Dr. Kunimoto has authored numerous peer-reviewed publications and two major ophthalmology textbooks. See full bio
 William F. Mieler, MD
Interim Head, Professor of Ophthalmology, and Vice-Chairman for Education
Illinois Eye and Ear Infirmary, University of Illinois at Chicago
Chicago, Illinois
Dr. Mieler is interim head, professor of ophthalmology, and vice-chairman for education in the Department of Ophthalmology & Visual Sciences at the University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL. He also serves as the residency pogram director, and as the director of vitreoretinal fellowship training. His specialty areas include diseases and surgery of the retina and vitreous, along with ocular oncology. See full bio
 Samir Patel, MD
Co-founder, President and Vice Chairman
Ophthotech Corporation
New York, New York
Dr. Patel is a co-founder, president and vice-chair of Ophthotech Corporation, which specializes in the development of novel therapeutics to treat retinal diseases. He spent over a decade in academic medicine, serving as the director of the Retina Service and the residency program at the University of Chicago. His area of academic interest focused on cell-based therapies for age-related macular degeneration. See full bio
 Sanduk Ruit, MD
Executive Director
Tilganga Institute of Ophthalmology
Kathmandu Nepal
Dr. Ruit and his team continuously struggle to fight against the barriers of modern cataract surgery to the marginalized. In the late 80s, Dr. Ruit and his team first simplified the conventional extra capsular cataract extraction with lens implantation and made it appropriate for local conditions. See full bio
 Taiji Sakamoto, MD, PhD
Professor and Chair
Kagoshima University
Kagoshima, Japan
Professor Sakamoto has more than 20 years experience in the study of retinal diseases. He studied molecular pathology and found a new mechanism causing retinal cell damage. Recently he discovered that optical coherence tomography can predict the biochemical status of the eye, which opens a new avenue for a clinical use of this technique. See full bio
 Gaurav K. Shah, MD
Clinical Professor of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences
Director of Vitreoretinal Fellowship Program
The Retina Institute
St. Louis, Missouri
Dr. Shah came to The Retina Institute in the summer of 1999, where he not only sees patients in the office, but is also the Director of the Vitreo-Retinal Fellowship Program, participates in Grand Rounds, and various lecture forums. He was voted Ophthalmology Clinical Teacher of the Year for 2001-02. See full bio
 Geoffrey Tabin, MD
Professor of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences
John A. Moran Eye Center
Salt Lake City, Utah
Dr. Tabin is professor of ophthalmology and visual sciences and co-director of the Division of International Ophthalmology at the University of Utah's John A. Moran Eye Center. He is also the founding chairman of the "Himalayan Cataract Project." He specializes in cornea, cataract and refractive surgery. See full bio
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