News Releases: General Information

• Physicians Honored at Recent American Academy of Ophthalmology Conference
  (ATLANTA) At the recent American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) annual meeting in San Francisco, three Emory Eye Center faculty members and two associate faculty were honored with awards. AAO is the world’s largest association of eye physicians and surgeons, eye MDs, with more than 27,000 members worldwide. Attendance at the 2009 meeting in San Francisco was approximately 25,000 with members of the Pan-American Association of Ophthalmology (PAAO) also in attendance.

• Emory Eye Center Ranks in Top Ten in Ophthalmology Times Annual Survey
  (ATLANTA) Emory Eye Center ranked in the top ten with other distinguished U.S. academic eye institutions in the annual survey of ophthalmology programs conducted by Ophthalmology Times. In the October 15 issue, Emory Eye Center placed in the “Best Residency Program” listing as 8th, up two slots from the 2008 listing at 10th.

• Emory Eye Center to Have Presence At Emory Clark-Holder Clinic, LaGrange

  August 28, 2008 | (ATLANTA) Emory Eye Center physician Jiong Yan, MD, assistant professor of ophthalmology at Emory School of Medicine and retina specialist within Emory Eye Center, now sees patients at Emory Clark-Holder Clinic in LaGrange, Ga. in addition to her duties at Emory Eye Center and the Veterans Administration Medical Center. Dr. Yan will see patients on every other Thursday of the month.

• Diabetic Eye Disease Month Underscores Need for Annual Eye Exams
  Oct. 10, 2008 | (ATLANTA) November is both American Diabetes Month and Diabetic Eye Disease Month. More Americans than ever have diabetes. In fact, 8 percent of the population has diabetes - 23.6 million children and adults. Of those individuals, only about 18 million have been diagnosed. Additionally, some 57 million Americans are pre-diabetic.

• Emory Eye Center Places in Top Ten of U.S. News & World Report Specialty Rankings
  July 15, 2008 | (ATLANTA)  Emory Eye Center has again ranked among the top ophthalmology centers in this country within the prestigious U.S. News & World Report’s guide to America’s top medical institutions. This year, Emory Eye Center placed #9. The 2008 edition “America’s Best Hospitals” guide, dated July 23, ranks the top hospitals in 16 medical specialties.  The rankings can also be found online at http://health.usnews.com/sections/health/best-hospitals.

• Emory Eye Center Faculty To Present at Foundation Fighting Blindness Seminar
  February 26, 2008 | (ATLANTA) Four Emory Eye Center faculty members will present information on retinal diseases and treatments at a Foundation Fighting Blindness half-day seminar on Saturday, March 29, in Atlanta. The event is free and open to the public.  “Macular Degeneration, RP and Related Diseases” will focus on treatments and therapies, research advances and low vision resources to help in day-to-day activities.

• Good Eyeglasses Key to Total Well-Being Says Emory Opthalmologists
  (ATLANTA) A recent study reported in the Archives of Ophthalmology (November) states that elderly patients who received new eyeglasses not only had better vision and subsequent increased activity levels, but also had fewer depressive symptoms. Depression in the elderly is a common malady, particularly in those who are confined to nursing homes or with ongoing, debilitating illnesses.
  Nov. 16, 2007

• Emory Eye Center Residents Give Back to a Community Devastated by Hurricanes
  (ATLANTA) The entire 3rd Year Residency Class of Emory Eye Center recently volunteered their time and talents for a day of intense physical work at the recent American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) conference in New Orleans.
  Nov. 16, 2007

• Emory Names Timothy W. Olsen Ophthalmology Chair, Director of Emory Eye Center
  ATLANTA - Timothy W. Olsen, MD, has been appointed chair of the Department of Ophthalmology, Emory University School of Medicine, and director of Emory Eye Center. He will hold the F. Phinizy Calhoun Sr. Chair. His appointment is effective Jan. 1, 2008.
  September 18, 2007

• Emory Eye Center Suggests Eye Exam for Those Over 40
  (ATLANTA) The American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) recently disseminated results of a 1,200 person survey that reports that only 11% of Americans consider themselves at risk for any sort of eye disease. The AAO reports further states that those who are most at risk are typically unaware. Those findings are echoed by Emory Eye Center physicians, who find that to be true on a daily basis.
  August 1, 2007

• Emory Ophthalmology Researcher Collaborates for Guidelines for Optimal Surgical Outcomes
  (ATLANTA) In a move to provide guidelines for better ophthalmic surgical outcomes, Emory Eye Center’s Henry F. Edelhauser, PhD, director of research, along with a selected committee of professionals— the Ad Hoc Task Force on Cleaning and Sterilization of Intraocular Instruments— came together last fall at Emory University to tackle the difficult issue of ophthalmic instrument cleaning and sterilization.
  April 5, 2007

• Eyeglasses Deserve Our Respect, Says Emory Eye Center
  (ATLANTA) Many people today see clearly because of their eyeglasses — often referred to as “spectacles” in times past. A 2006 report states that 72% of the U.S. population requires some sort of vision correction. But most don’t have a clue as to the proper care for those glasses. Even though more and more style-conscious types turn to glasses for their personal fashion statements, they don’t respect those eyeglasses like they should.
  March 15, 2007

• Emory Eye Center Among First to Offer New Multi-focal IOL For Cataract Patients
  Freedom from Glasses a Plus (ATLANTA) Emory Eye Center is now offering a newly FDA-approved intraocular lens (IOL) for cataract patients. The lens provides them with a new option for post-surgery vision correction-that of freedom from glasses. The lens provides near, intermediate and far vision capabilities.
  July 21, 2005

• Emory Eye Center staff assists in nationwide eye screening for glaucoma
  (ATLANTA) Emory Eye Center professionals are assisting Emory School of Medicine (SOM) third- and fourth-year students to administer the Student Sight Savers Program, a national program to help screen for glaucoma. The screening is at no cost for the patient. Those at risk for developing glaucoma include African Americans over 35 years of age and persons with diabetes. The screening includes: optic nerve assessment, pressure check and visual field assessment. Those patients needing follow-up will be seen at Grady Hospital's eye clinic.
  April 12, 2005

• Emory Eye Center pathology lab passes milestone
  Emory Eye Center's L. F. Montgomery Lab, its pathology facility, passed a monumental milestone recently. In the past 15 years of service (from 1989-2004), the lab's staff has evaluated some 30,000 specimens-an impressive volume-since from its inception in 1941 to 1989 (48 years) it saw 15,000 cases.
  August 16, 2004

• Emory Eye Center enlarges its Comprehensive Ophthalmology offerings with Vision and Optical Services now on the 1st floor of Clinic B
  Emory Eye Center has enlarged its Comprehensive Ophthalmology service with a 4,300 square foot expansion on the first floor of The Emory Clinic, B Building. Housing the Vision and Optical Services sections, the new suite will include clinics for vision care, low vision rehabilitation and a new state-of-the-art optical shop. Previously, these services were housed on the fifth floor of the clinic, where Emory Eye Center's Comprehensive and Specialty Contact Lens sections remain. The new clinic is the culmination of 13 years of leadership by Ned S. Witkin, OD. director of Optometric and Low Vision Services from 1991 to 2004. Dr. Witkin, the Eye Center's first optometrist, known for his co-development of the JORDY-a low vision device-was instrumental in the vision for and creation of this new expanded clinic before he died on January 24, 2004.
  June 24, 2004

• Emory Eye Center suggests celebrating safely on July 4th: Just leave the fireworks to professionals
  Ophthalmologists at Emory Eye Center and across the nation are reminding those who will participate in July 4th fireworks displays put on by professionals to do just that-leave the fireworks to the professionals. According to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), more than 9,000 fireworks-related injuries are seen in emergency rooms each year. Of these, nearly half are injuries to the head, nearly 30 percent of these injuries are to the eyes and one-fourth result in permanent vision loss or blindness.
  June 23, 2004

• Emory Eye Center offers first computer-based treatment improving visual deficits caused by stroke & TBI
  Today scientists and physicians at Emory Eye Center announced they are the first in the Georgia to offer patients a new computer-based technology that may improve portions of vision lost to stroke, Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) and other brain diseases. The treatment, NovaVision Vision Restoration Therapy (VRT ), was developed by NovaVision, Inc. and cleared for marketing by the U.S. Food and Drug administration in April 2003.
  April 13 , 2004

• Emory Eye Center physician wins top retina award
  Emory Eye Center retina specialist Daniel F. Martin, MD was the recent winner of the Richard and Hinda Rosenthal Foundation Award in the Visual Sciences through the Macula Society. The Society met in late February in Las Vegas, where Dr. Martin presented the Rosenthal Lecture, as this year's winner of the prestigious award. The Rosenthal award is presented yearly to "that individual or group of individuals under 45 years of age whose work gives high promise of a notable advance in the clinical treatment of disorders of the eye." Dr. Martin joins a prestigious list of retina physicians who have won this award since its inception in 1991, the highest award bestowed upon retinal specialists in that age category.
  March 8 , 2004

• Eye ophthalmologist urges eye exams during Glaucoma Awareness Month
  The American Academy of Ophthalmology, the Eye M.D. Association, and the Emory Eye Center, Atlanta, urge those who may be at risk for developing glaucoma to get a complete eye examination from an Eye M.D. during January as part of Glaucoma Awareness Month. Glaucoma, a condition associated with elevated pressure inside the eye, can damage the optic nerve and cause vision loss. January 14, 2004

• Emory Eye Center physician echoes PBA's warning that Diabetes is the leading cause of new cases of blindness in American adults
  November 1-30 is Diabetic Eye Disease Awareness Month. Many are unaware that diabetes can lead to vision loss when untreated. phthalmologists at the Emory Eye Center routinely treat patients who have the particular complications of diabetes that affect their vision. Of the approximately 17 million Americans with diabetes, about 6 million do not even know they have the disease. About one million new cases of diabetes are diagnosed each year, and close to half a million Americans die every year from complications of the disease says Prevent Blindness America (PBA), the nation's leading volunteer eye health and safety organization dedicated to fighting blindness and saving sight.
  November 11 , 2003

• MCG Health System partners with Emory and Georgia in pilot eye screening procedure project
  Augusta, Ga. -- MCG Health System, along with Emory Eye Center and the Georgia Department of Human Resources (DHR), are sponsoring a pilot project that they hope will lead to statewide eye screenings for diabetics. Diabetes is a blood sugar disorder that can lead to serious complications, including blindness. It is estimated that more than 14 million diabetics across the country are at risk of developing diabetic retinopathy, a blinding disorder characterized by damage to blood vessels of the retina. In Georgia alone, there are nearly 140,000 estimated cases of diabetic retinopathy among those ages 18 and older. August 20 , 2003

• Emory Eye Center physician receives teaching award
  Emory Eye Center physician Hans E. Grossniklaus, MD, is the recipient of a teaching award for clinical faculty members at Emory University. The award recognizes and rewards clinical teaching services provided by Emory Clinic physicians. The program provides $10,000 awards for salary expense relief for clinical faculty members and requires that each Emory Clinic section raise matching funds.
  May 22, 2003

• Emory Eye Center boasts editors of three international journals
  Emory Eye Center has the distinction of having the most physicians within the Emory School of Medicine who serve as editors for national and international medical journals.
  May 21, 2003

• Emory Eye Center physician named American Neurological Association's Distinguished Teacher
  Emory Eye Center physician and neuro-ophthalmologist Nancy J. Newman was recently awarded the American Neurological Association’s (ANA) Distinguished Teacher Award. The award was established in order to recognize outstanding accomplishments in teaching neurology students. Its purpose is to encourage efforts to recognize and reward contributions by gifted and talented teachers in neurology. She will be recognized at the October 2003 ANA annual meeting in San Francisco.
  May 13 , 2003

• Emory Eye Center Director Aaberg honored with election to prestigious Honor Medical Society
  Thomas M. Aaberg, Sr., MD, director of the Emory Eye Center and chairman of the Department of Ophthalmology, Emory University School of Medicine, was recently elected to Alpha Omega Alpha, the National Honor Medical Society. Selection is based not only on professional achievements but also on integrity, capacity for leadership, compassion, and fairness in dealing with colleagues. “This honor is thus a testimony to your academic excellence and outstanding surgical and teaching skills you have demonstrated as a member of the faculty at Emory University School of Medicine,” said Jonas A. Shulman, MD, acting faculty councillor of the AOA Beta Chapter of Georgia. "Dr. Aaberg is an outstanding role model for our medical students,” says Thomas J. Lawley, Dean of the Emory School of Medicine. “He combines dedication to teaching and research with his skill as an excellent clinician. Emory is very fortunate to have Dr. Aaberg as one of our leaders."
  April 3, 2003

• Emory Eye Center recipient of Knights Templar Awards
  The Emory Eye Center was recently awarded $39,000 by the Georgia Knights Templar Educational Foundation, Inc. The awards will be used to continue important educational and research opportunities that impact the entire state of Georgia. Over the past several years, the Georgia Knights Templar have awarded some $351,000 to the Emory Eye Center. March 19, 2003

• Emory Ophthalmologist receives inaugural Jahnigen Career Development Scholars Award
  Emory Eye Center ophthalmologist Enrique Garcia-Valenzuela, MD, has been selected as one of ten inaugural Jahnigen Career Development Scholars. The Jahnigen Career Development Scholars Awards were created to encourage young physicians and surgeons to become interested in the geriatrics aspect of their discipline as a career focus through the funding of highly competitive two-year awards in the amount of $200,000. Dr. Garcia was selected for this program because of the promise demonstrated in his proposal, his mentors' sponsorship and his institution's support of his work.
  August 6, 2002

• More Georgians facing blindness than ever before, says NEI study: Report released on one of the most-feared disabilities
  (ATLANTA) The National Eye Institute (NEI) released findings on March 20 that state that more Americans than ever are facing the threat of blindness from age-related eye disease. More than one million Americans aged 40 and over are currently blind, and an additional 2.4 million are visually impaired. Although Georgians fare better than the national average, the statistics should make anyone over 40 take notice and seek annual eye exams. These numbers are expected to double over the next 30 years as the Baby Boomer generation ages. At the Emory Eye Center, those over the age of 40 are seen only a daily basis for such disorders and diseases as macular degeneration, cataract, glaucoma, diabetic retinopathy, and more.
  March 22, 2002

• Emory Eye Center finds eye drops to treat childhood disorder can work as well as patching the eye
  (ATLANTA) A National Eye Institute (NEI) study, conducted at more than 40 sites nationwide including Emory Eye Center, has found that atropine drops, given once a day to treat amblyopia or lazy eye -- the most common cause of visual impairment in children -- work as well as the standard treatment of patching one eye. This research finding in the Amblyopia Treatment Study may lead to better compliance with treatment and improved quality of life in children with this eye disorder. These results appear in the March issue of Archives of Ophthalmology.
  March 11, 2002

• Emory Ophthalmology professors offer Undergraduate teaching
  An Emory University undergraduate course, “Biology of the Eye,” is quite possibly the only undergraduate offering taught by Emory University School of Medicine (SOM) professors. The offering gives the Emory Department of Ophthalmology the distinction of offering a course where students signing up for Biology 475 will actually be taught by SOM ophthalmology professors.
  February 5, 2002

• Emory Eye Center again in Ophthalmology Times National Rankings
  The Emory Eye Center has again landed in Ophthalmology Times’ top ten rankings for national ophthalmic programs. Ophthalmology Times is a semi-monthly newspaper written and reviewed by ophthalmologists. The Eye Center was ranked in the Nov. 1 issue under the category “Best Overall Program” as eighth (the same as last year), in “Best Clinical (patient care) Programs” as seventh (a new ranking for the Eye Center) and as sixth in the category “Best Residency Programs” (same as last year).
  November 16, 2001

• How Diabetes Can Adversely Affect your eyes
  November 1-30 is Diabetic Eye Disease Awareness Month. Many are unaware that diabetes can lead to vision loss when untreated. Ophthalmologists at the Emory Eye Center routinely treat patients who have the particular complications of diabetes that affect their vision. Diabetic retinopathy is a complication of diabetes, which can weaken the retina and block, distort or blur vision. While no one knows why diabetes sometimes causes abnormal blood vessels to form in the back of the eye, current research is providing some answers. With diabetic retinopathy these new vessels can leak fluid into the retina or vitreous humor (the jelly that fills the eye) and contract, distort or detach the retina.
  November 2, 2001

• Treat Contact Lenses with the respect they deserve
  Just because contact lenses are easily accessible and affordable these days doesn’t mean they should be treated as cosmetic items, says a contact lens specialist at the Emory Eye Center. Because of massive advertising campaigns by contact lens manufacturers in the past, many have come to think of contact lenses as beauty and lifestyle enhancements instead of the medical devices that they are. We can change our eye color at will with a choice of lenses widely available in shades of lavender, green, brown, blue and more.
  July 9, 2001

• New Generation of Vision-Enhancing System Offers Independence to Individuals with Low Vision
  The second generation of a popular and seemingly amazing low vision device has recently come on the market, according to Emory Eye Center's Director of Low Vision, Dr. Ned Witkin. Named the "Jordy" (v.2.0), the newest version offers several improvements over last year's debut model. "This is the most exciting advancement we've had in technology for the visually impaired in years," says Dr. Witkin.
  April 24, 2001

• Emory Medical School student awarded RPB funding to take a year off and do research at Emory Eye Center
  Not many medical students take a year off to enrich their education with research, but that's just what Emory University third-year medical student Chirag Parikh did in order to work with Emory Eye Center researcher Henry Edelhauser, Ph.D. Under the guidance of Dr. Edelhauser, whose expertise is corneal research, Parikh has found a second home, at least for this year.
  February 1, 2001

• Emory Eye Center Director Aaberg receives prestigious international award
  Thomas M. Aaberg, Sr., MD, the F. Phinzy Calhoun Sr. Professor and chairman of the Department of Ophthalmology in the Emory School of Medicine, has received the prestigious Hermann Wacker Prize at this year's conference of Club Jules Gonin held in Taormina, Sicily, on Sept. 6. As recipient of the Wacker Prize, Dr. Aaberg also was the guest lecturer for the conference.
  November 29, 2000

• Patient with eye infection deemed 'miracle' after Emory physicians at Grady help save his sight
  Earlier this year, Ellis Young of Royston, GA, was down on his luck. He had just returned to his trucking job after nursing a broken leg and elbow for six months when the unexpected happened: A fleck of dust flew into his right eye, causing a severe eye infection.
  October 23, 2000

• News Tip: Those with Contact Lenses may need to take extra care while preparing peppers
  People with contact lenses, particularly soft lenses, may not be aware that certain foods that they may handle during meal preparation can contaminate their lenses when they later handle those lenses-even after repeated hand washings and the lapse of several hours.
  October 12, 2000

• The Foundation Fighting Blindness names Emory a national research center for retinal degenerations
  The Emory Eye Center was named today by The Foundation Fighting Blindness as a national research center for retinal degenerations. The Foundation has awarded Emory more than $100,000 for each of the next five years for research into the cause, prevention and treatment of retinal degenerations. Retinal degenerations, including macular degeneration and retinitis pigmentosa, are sight-stealing disorders that affect the light-sensitive tissue in the back of the eye.
  November 17, 1998

• Emory Eye Center receives $100,000 grant from Research to Prevent Blindness
  The Emory Eye Center has received a grant of $100,000 from Research to Prevent Blindness (RPB) to support scientific investigations into the causes, treatment and prevention of blinding diseases. RPB is the world’s leading philanthropic organization supporting eye research. The organization has awarded Emory a total of $1,757,600 in grants. Since 1960, RPB has channeled more than $157 million to medical institutions throughout the country. “This grant will help us continue our ongoing research until we can obtain further federal or private funding,” said Thomas Aaberg, M.D., professor and chairman, Department of Ophthalmology at Emory University School of Medicine, and director, Emory Eye Center. July 30, 1998

• Emory Ophthalmologist receives merit award from Research to Prevent Blindness
  Paul Sternberg, Jr., M.D., director of Vitroretinal Surgery and Disease at the Emory Eye Center, recently was selected as a recipient of the Research to Prevent Blindness Lew R. Wasserman Merit Award. This $55,000 award will help Dr. Sternberg, who is a retina surgeon, further his scientific research into promising treatments for retinal disorders, including macular degeneration, the leading cause of blindness for individuals over age 65.
  July 30, 1998

• Emory ophthalmologist edits definitive textbook on corneal diseases
  Cornea specialist George O. Waring III, M.D., professor of ophthalmology, Emory University School of Medicine, recently published the second edition of Corneal Disorders, Clinical Diagnosis and Management. Howard M. Leibowitz, M.D., a professor of ophthalmology Boston University School of Medicine, served as co-editor of the textbook.
  June 1998

• Emory Eye Center honors its director with a surprise black tie event
  On a weekend when most Atlantans were wining and dining their sweethearts, more than 300 Emory Eye Center faculty, staff, donors and other friends paid special tribute to one of their own. On Friday, February 13 at the Four Seasons Hotel, Emory University honored Thomas M. Aaberg, Sr., M.D., on the occasion of his tenth anniversary as chairman and director of the Emory Eye Center.
  February 17, 1998

• Emory Eye Center receives a $350,000 professorship from Research to Prevent Blindness
  Emory Eye Center immunologist Judith A. Kapp, Ph.D., was awarded the Jules and Doris Stein Professorship from the Research to Prevent Blindness. RPB, the world’s leading philanthropic organization supporting eye research, granted the Eye Center $350,000 in support over five years and an opportunity to apply for additional funding. Dr. Kapp plans to use the funding for her laboratory research into retina cell transplantation as a treatment for blinding diseases of the retina, such as macular degeneration or diabetic retinopathy.
  March 4, 1997

• Emory Eye Center receives $1.1 million grant from the National Institutes of Health
  The Emory Eye Center recently received a five-year core grant totaling more than $1.1 million from the National Eye Institute, which is part of the National Institutes of Health. The Emory Eye Center has been a core grant center, considered a gold standard among ophthalmic institutions, for 10 years. This new award extends the designation for another five-year term.
  May 30, 1996