News from
The Department of Ophthalmology
& Visual Sciences

UI Ophthalmology Ranked in Top 10 in U.S. News & World Report magazine. The UI Department of Ophthalmology & Visual Sciences is ranked at number 6 in this year's U.S. News & World Report "Best Hospitals in America" issue. The issue will hit the newstands on July 14 but can be accessed online. Read the UI press release.

Take Care to Avoid July 4th Fireworks Injuries. (Press Release) Last year, approximately 6,400 Americans spent part of their Fourth of July holiday in the emergency room, according to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC). Despite warnings to consumers on the dangers of fireworks, the number of injuries every year has remained relatively steady. But, the long-term effects of these injuries can be severe. In fact, the American Society of Ocular Trauma states that an average of 400 Americans permanently lose vision in one or both eyes due to fireworks injuries annually. (more)

Flood-Related Eye Care Precautions (Press Release)

UI optometrist Sindt offers eye safety tips: After the floods of 1993, the University of Iowa saw a record number of eye infections related to water-borne pathogens. These pathogens--including amoeba, parasites, bacteria, and virus--are extremely dangerous to the eye and may lead to corneal transplantation or loss of sight. "We have already seen flood-related eye infections and we have every reason to believe they will be as prevalent, or more so, than after the last flood," said UI Hospitals and Clinics optometrist Christine Sindt in an interview with UI Health Care Today. Read a transcript of the interview, and get access to an audio recording of her comments, here.

Prevention, early treatment key to avoiding flood-related eye infections

Video Features Project 3000. (streaming video, approx. 21 minutes) Project 3000, based at the University of Iowa, is an exciting eye research project involving Chicago Cubs first baseman, Derek Lee, Boston Celtics CEO, Wyc Grosbeck and other sports leaders as well as leading scientists and motivated patients and families.

UI Ophthalmology & Visual Sciences part of ORBIS Flying Eye Hospital Team Representatives from several Big Ten schools, including The University of Iowa, recently participated in a volunteer effort organized by ORBIS International to help physicians in Vietnam improve how they treat and prevent blindness and other serious eye conditions. (more...)

Kuusisto Creating New Vision of Disabilities (The Gazette, May 16, 2008) Dr. Steve Kuusisto joined the UI faculty as an English professor with a joint appointment in the Carver College of Medicine. At the College he is a "humanizing agent" who helps educate doctors about disability issues. UI officials hope Kuusisto bridges the goals of disability advocates and health professionals."I'm probably the first-ever poet named to a faculty of ophthalmology," Kuusisto says with a smile. A graduate of the UI Writers' Workshop and a best-selling author who has appeared on Oprah Winfrey's talk show, Kuusisto was recruited from Ohio State University, where he helped develop a disability studies program spanning academic departments. He came to Iowa City with his wife, Connie, who shares his enthusiasm for helping people with disabilities.Part of his UI job is finding ways to better integrate thinking about disabilities into curriculum. (more...)

Iowa Lions Eye Bank Spring Dedication Ceremony The Iowa Lions Donor Memorial & Healing Garden, located directly in front of the new main entrance of University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, was dedicated on October 10th of 2005 to commemorate organ, tissue and eye donors and all those who have supported the work of donation, transplantation and research. The Memorial Garden is paved with 994 stones that can be purchased and dedicated in memory of donors, recipients, and those affiliated with the donation process. Six of these special stones were dedicated during the afternoon ceremony on Tuesday, May 13th. (more...)

UI contributes to gene therapy breakthrough for blinding eye disease. Researchers at the University of Iowa played a key role in a landmark gene therapy breakthrough reported Sunday in an online article in the New England Journal of Medicine. Edwin Stone, M.D., Ph.D., UI professor of ophthalmology and visual sciences and a Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator, led his group in the genetic testing portion of the study. (UI News Release)

Val Sheffield, M.D., Ph.D., Martin and Ruth Carver Chair in Genetics, has been renewed through August 2013 as an investigator of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute

Hageman research offers hope for people with eye disease (Forbes, March 24)
A breakthrough in gene research may offer hope for the millions suffering from macular degeneration. University of Iowa Ophthalmology Professor, Gregory Hageman, PhD, is at the forefront of research on lasting treatments for dry AMD. Over the past four years, Hageman has uncovered how AMD is linked to three variations of the so-called complement factor H gene, which is a crucial player in regulating the immune system. http://www.forbes.com/forbes/2008/0324/076.html

National and local Mini Medical School program to feature Dr. John Fingert, Assistant Professor of Ophthalmology
Dr. Fingert will present “Vision Loss: Common Eye Conditions and Looking into the Future“ at the University of Iowa’s first-ever national Mini Medical School to be held on March 19, 2008 in Scottsdale, AZ. His presentation in Arizona will be followed by participation as a guest speaker in the local Iowa City version of Mini Medical School. Dr. Fingert is one of several faculty members whose presentations will focus on “Making Sense of Your Health: See More, Hear More, Do More”. The Mini Medical School program is a four-session program on Tuesdays in April. It is open and free to the public, but registration is required. Information and registration may be found at: www.medicine.uiowa.edu/minimedicalschool

Blind professor, Steve Kuusisto, helps others see another side to disabilities. Kuusisto joined the UI faculty in fall 2007 with a joint appointment in the Carver College of Medicine and the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. Dr. Edwin Stone, a professor of ophthalmology in the Carver College of Medicine who was instrumental in bringing Kuusisto to the UI, said having Kuusisto on board helps bridge the goals of disability advocates and health professionals. (more...)

Role identified for glaucoma gene and related signaling pathway: Researchers have found that a gene and a related signaling pathway play a role in the development of glaucoma, which is a common cause of visual impairment and blindness worldwide. The team was led by Alcon Research and included other investigators from the University of Iowa and the National Cancer Institute (NCI), part of the National Institutes of Health.

UI researchers involved in the study included John Fingert, M.D., PhD., professor of ophthalmology, Val Sheffield, M.D., Ph.D., the Martin and Ruth Carver Chair in Genetics, professor of pediatrics and a Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HMMI) investigator; and Edwin Stone, M.D., Ph.D., the Seamans-Hauser Chair of Molecular Ophthalmology, professor of ophthalmology and visual sciences, and an HHMI investigator. (more...)

Driving simulator seeks participants for contact lens study The National Advanced Driving Simulator, a research and teaching unit of the University of Iowa College Of Engineering, is seeking licensed drivers who currently wear soft spherical contact lenses for a study examining the effectiveness of two different contact lenses on nighttime driving performance.

Residency match results were announced on January 17, 2008.

Dr. W.L.M Alward announces his new Online Video Atlas of Gonioscopy, gonioscopy.org. Ophthalmologists and Residents, learn more about gonioscopy through the use of videography. It covers the basic examination techniques as well as more advanced techniques such as indentation and corneal wedge. There are video examples of most glaucoma-related diseases.

For stories prior to January 1, 2008, please see our news archive.

Iowa Eye Association Annual Meeting Photographs