President
Doheny Professional Alumni Association
A Year-End Note from John A. Irvine, MD
It is hard to believe that the end of another calendar year is fast approaching, but there is much to look forward to as we embrace the final months of 2023 and anticipate the arrival of 2024.
In the last couple of months, Doheny concluded its 75th anniversary year, broke ground on the new Doheny Eye Center UCLA Pasadena clinic that will be located on the first floor of our Pasadena campus, we held the 5th Annual Doheny-UCLA International Glaucoma Symposium led by Vik Chopra. Lastly, with your support, we were again ranked in the Top 5 by U.S. News & World Report.
Looking ahead, we hope to see many of you at our upcoming annual Alumni Reception during the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) annual meeting – more details are included below. Doheny will also be well-represented at AAO this year, and we invite you to visit us at booth 5650 at the Moscone Convention Center November 4-6. On January 27, we will host the 2nd Annual Retina Symposium led by Michael Ip and Kirk Hou.
Thank you for your continued support of the Doheny Professional Alumni Association, and of Doheny Eye Institute. I wish you and your loved ones a happy, healthy and prosperous upcoming holiday season and new year.
We encourage you to stay in touch and share your professional and personal achievements with us. As always, we’re here to assist you, so don’t hesitate to let us know how our organization can be of service.
Thank you for being a part of our Doheny community. Here’s to a bright future together!
President
Doheny Professional Alumni Association
RSVP TODAY: Annual Doheny and Stein Eye Institutes Alumni Reception at AAO
We invite you to join us for the annual Doheny and Stein Eye Institutes Alumni Reception during AAO on Sunday, Nov. 5 from 5:30 p.m. until 9:30 p.m. at the St. Regis Hotel, in the Conservatory Room. For more information, click here.
Doheny at AAO 2023
This year’s AAO annual meeting will take place November 4-6 at San Francisco’s Moscone Center, and Doheny Eye Institute will have a strong presence. Eleven of our esteemed clinicians will present. Visit us at booth #5650!
Presenters from Doheny include:
- Alfredo Sadun, MD, PhD
- Benjamin B. Bert, MD
- Brian A. Francis, MD, MS
- Daniel B. Rootman, MD, MSc
- Federico G. Velez, MD
- JoAnn A. Giaconi, MD
- John A. Irvine, MD
- Peter A. Quiros, MD
- SriniVas R. Sadda, MD
- Victoria L. Tseng, MD
- Vikas Chopra, MD
The presentations will cover an array of topics, including advanced orbital imaging, diagnosing, and treating patients with complex strabismus, changes to the physician-patient relationship brought about by technological innovation, age-related macular degeneration and glaucoma.
We welcome you to attend the presentations and lectures of the Doheny and Stein faculty.
Doheny-UCLA Faculty to be Recognized at AAO
The AAO awards a select few individuals in recognition of contributions to the Academy, its scientific and educational programs, and to ophthalmology. We are proud to have three Doheny-UCLA faculty being recognized this year.
SriniVas R. Sadda, MD, Recognized at the Retina Society’s 56th Annual Scientific Meeting
SriniVas R. Sadda, MD, was selected to give the Retina Society’s Charles L. Schepens MD Lecture at the Retina Society’s Annual Scientific Meeting on Thursday, October 12. He presented “Insights into Pathophysiology of AMD Revealed by High-Resolution Imaging.”
We are also pleased to announce that Dr. Sadda was selected to receive the Retina Research Foundation (RRF) Merit Award, which provides a $45,000 grant for research.
The Award of Merit in Retina Research was established in 1978 to recognize outstanding vision scientists whose work contributes to knowledge about retinal diseases.
Making this recognition even more special, this marks 20 years since former Doheny President, the late Dr. Stephen J. Ryan, received the award in 2003.
We congratulate Dr. Sadda on this prestigious honor, and for continuing to be an outstanding, globally-recognized pioneer in his field.
Alfredo A. Sadun, MD, PhD
Presented to the International Community at EUROMIT
We applaud Dr. Sadun for this highly regarded opportunity, and thank him for his contributions to his field and for helping to make Doheny Eye Institute a global leader in vision research.
Highlights from the 5th Annual Doheny-UCLA International Glaucoma Symposium
After a 3-year hiatus due to the worldwide pandemic, Doheny hosted the 5th Annual International Glaucoma Symposium on Saturday, September 30, 2023. This half-day conference was centered around Targeted Glaucoma Surgeries: MIGS vs. Traditional, with presentations covering imaging pearls, medical and surgical management with MIGS vs traditional approaches, cataract surgery and glaucoma, as well as complex cases (diagnostic and management dilemmas).
Vikas Chopra, MD, led the program and stated, “the symposium was a resounding success with class-leading presentations from our department of ophthalmology faculty representing Doheny and Stein Eye Institutes.” The meeting attendance was one of the highest recorded for such an event incorporating both live and through virtual formats.
The symposium featured four distinguished keynote speakers:
- The Inaugural Donald Minckler Doheny Glaucoma Lecturer was Wallace Lee Alward, MD, Professor Emeritus in the Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences at the University of Iowa Health Care Carver College of Medicine. Dr. Alward conducted two talks. The first was Gonioscopy: Essential Skill for MIGS with Techniques for Difficult Angles, and the second was GATT for MYOC Juvenile Open Angle Glaucoma.
- Alex Huang, MD, PhD, Associate Professor and Alfred Vogt Endowed Chair in Ophthalmology at UC San Diego Health, Shiley Eye Institute, San Diego, presented Segmental Aqueous Humor Outflow and Targeted Minimally Invasive Glaucoma Surgeries: Pearls Learned from Bench to Bedside: GPS Guidance on Where to Put ‘Em!
- Kevin Miller, MD, Chief of Cataract and Refractive Surgery Division, Director of Anterior Segment Diagnostic Laboratory, Professor of Ophthalmology at the David Geffen School of Medicine UCLA, UCLA Stein Eye Institute, presented Cataract Surgery and MIGS – Perspective from a Non-Glaucoma Specialist, AAO Preferred Practice Guidelines.
- Dale Heuer, MD, Retired Professor and Chair of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences at the Medical College of Wisconsin, and Senior Volunteer Research Scientist at Doheny Eye Institute, presented Establishment of the Donald Minckler Named Lectureship at Doheny Eye Institute: Creating an Enduring Legacy.
Other speakers included Judy Chen, MD, JoAnn Giaconi, MD, Victoria Tseng, MD, PhD, Kouros Nouri-Mahdavi, MD, PhD, Brian Francis, MD, MS, Stephanie Midtling, MD, and Vikas Chopra, MD. We thank all of our presenters, keynote speakers, conference planning faculty and attendees who helped make this another successful symposium. We hope to see many of you there next year.
Alumni Notes
2023 Lasker-DeBakey Clinical Medical Research Award
The 2023 Lasker-DeBakey Clinical Medical Research Award recognizes Doheny alum, David Huang, MD, PhD, now at Casey Eye Institute, Oregon Health & Science University, along with James G. Fujimoto of Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Eric A. Swanson of Massachusetts Institute of Technology, for their pioneering work in developing optical coherence tomography (OCT).
OCT employs light beams to produce detailed images of microstructures within the body’s tissues, notably the retina. This innovation enabled painless, real-time, high-resolution cross-sectional imaging of the eye’s internal architecture, transforming ophthalmology.
By facilitating rapid detection and treatment of retinal diseases without physical contact, OCT has preserved the eyesight of countless individuals. Additionally, OCT’s medical applications have expanded, with its integration into circulatory system probes and surgical microscopes, among other instruments.
Distinguished Lecture
Congratulations are in order for J. Sebag, MD, FACS, FRCOphth, FARVO.
On June 17, 2023, he delivered the Meyer-Schwickerath Lecture to the 35th International Congress of the German Society of Ophthalmic Surgery in Nuremberg. It was entitled, “Vitreous and the Lens – a tale of two media.”
Alumni to be Recognized at the AAO Annual Meeting
Every year, the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) recognizes a select few individuals for their contributions to the Academy, its scientific and educational programs, and to ophthalmology. Please join us in congratulating the Doheny alumni that will be awarded this year.
2023 Achievement Award Recipient
Ghazala A. Datoo O’Keefe, MD
2023 Secretariat Award Recipient
Jesse L. Berry, MD
2023 Senior Achievement Award Recipients
Amani Fawzi, MD
Tsontcho Ianchulev, MD
Luiz Lima, MD
Purnima S. Patel, MD
Doheny-UCLA Once Again Rank in the Top 5 Ophthalmology Hospitals by U.S. News & World Report
We want to send a tremendous thank you to all of our alumni who voted for Doheny and UCLA to again rank in the Top 5 Ophthalmology Hospitals by U.S. News & World Report – for the 10th year in a row. We greatly appreciate your support and are honored and proud to enrich our world-class reputation with this recognition.
Second Annual Doheny-UCLA International Retina Symposium Scheduled for January 2024
On January 27, 2024, we will hold the second annual Doheny-UCLA International Retina Symposium.
The conference will be held at the Doheny Eye Institute campus in Pasadena. Visit the below link for more information.
Reminder to Join or Renew Your Alumni Membership!
Your dues support clinical and research fellows through scholarships, underwriting courses and lectures, and gifting educational material or equipment.
As a reminder, PAA member benefits include:
- Invitation to the alumni receptions at the Annual American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) and the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO) meetings
- Invitation to the Annual Alumni Dinner, including a discounted registration fee
- Free registration for one Doheny CME conference of your choice ($100 savings)
- Quarterly Eye on Doheny Alumni eNewsletter to keep you connected to Doheny and fellow alumni