The ASCRS Foundation’s Robert Sinskey Eye Institute will treat 12,000 patients in 2011 and the Eye Institute’s lead ophthalmologist, Dr. Kefaylew, estimates 25% of his patients suffer some form of glaucoma.

“Glaucoma is a major problem in Ethiopia and other poor regions in Africa and is the leading source of permanent blindness,” said Dr. Alan Crandall, Senior Vice Chairman of Ophthalmology and Visual Science at the University of Utah. Dr. Crandall has made several trips to Africa to train local ophthalmologists and is a past ASCRS president.

“Surgery is the best option to treat glaucoma patients in those parts of the world where medical therapy is not an option. Pressure-reducing eye drops can cost $100 a month. That’s a typical yearly salary for the average Ethiopian, plus there are no pharmacies near the villages where these patients live.  <<more>>  Donate Now

Increasing Patient Volume Strains Current Capacity

Additional diagnostic equipment is needed for the ASCRS Foundation’s Robert Sinskey Eye Institute in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The Sinskey Eye Institute is the foundation’s lead humanitarian project, and will treat over 12,000 patients this year – a 20% increase over 2010. With the ever-increasing patient volume has come the need to replace some older and/or non-functioning equipment. <<more>>

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Using Alpha-2B to Treat OSSN

With a view toward reducing morbidity and mortality from growths on the surface of the eye, 2010 ASCRS grant winner, Dr. Hyunjin Jane Kim is exploring the use of interferon as a treatment option.

Dr. Kim’s research would use Alpha-2B to treat OSSN or Ocular Surface Squamous Neoplasia which describes the entire spectrum of eye surface growths ranging from precancerous to cancerous diseases. The most extreme of these is invasive SCC or Squamous Cell Carcinoma which is locally invasive and can become cancerous in one to two percent of cases.  <<more>>

Attending the 2010 ASCRS Annual Meeting was Dr. Rahul Bhola, an ASCRS Foundation Resident Excellence Awards winners. The awards recognize exceptional resident performance in the areas of research, patient care, leadership and education and enable the winners to attend the ASCRS annual meeting courtesy of ASCRS Foundation.

"I was amazed by the enthusiasm of the participants and the organizers which resulted in a hugely successful meeting," said Dr. Bhola commenting on his first ASCRS annual meeting.  <<more>>

With the goal of increasing the safety of LASIK refractive surgery procedures, 2010 ASCRS Foundation grant winner, Dr. Frederico Guerra is beginning research to improve the current risk score system used for the procedure.

About nine million LASIK surgeries have been performed in the United States to date. Although this popular procedure for correcting refractive errors is considered safe, some complications still may occur. "We believe that some of these complications can be predicted in the pre-operative evaluation and thus, avoided," said Dr Guerra. Although there is a risk score system to predict complications, it can still lead to a 6% "false negative" rate classifying some patients as low risk who still develop complications after LASIK surgery.  <<more>>

Board Member, David F. Chang, MD, leads the foundations Effort

Expanding its humanitarian care activities, the ASCRS Foundation announced plans to support Project Vision, a Hong Kong based non-governmental organization, to train new cataract surgeons in rural charity eye centers in China.

Cataracts are by far the most common cause of major vision loss, accounting for approximately half of all blindness worldwide. It is estimated there are 1.3 million new cases of cataract blindness every year in China.  <<more>>

IOP Parameters to be Studied

Dr. Viral Juthani, a 2010 ASCRS Foundation grant recipient, is launching a study that could guide clinical decision making and treatment for Glaucoma, the second leading cause of blindness worldwide.

Intraocular pressure (IOP) is intrinsically related to nerve damage from glaucoma and is the only known modifiable risk factor associated with the onset and progression of the condition. However, that pressure fluctuates and there is disagreement about which IOP parameter (mean, peak, fluctuation) is most highly associated with the progression of glaucoma.  <<more>>

J. Brian Foster, MD

One of the ways the Foundation is advancing the profession is by recognizing young ophthalmologists who are making a mark early in their careers. Dr. J. Brian Foster—one of the Foundation’s 2010 Resident Excellence award winners—is a prime example.

Committed to balancing treatment and research, Dr. Foster strongly believes in contributing to the profession’s body of knowledge. "Academic medicine is compelling for me. I highly respect physicians that have busy practices but also contribute to the scientific literature and innovate, developing new surgical techniques and devices," Dr. Foster said.  <<more>>

Soni Study Possible through Foundation Grant

Dr. Chetan Soni, is exploring gene delivery techniques aided by nanotechnology as a way to offer non-surgical options for treating Fuchs’ Endothelial Dystrophy (FED). Soni is one of 10 research grant winners for 2010.

FED is the leading condition resulting in corneal transplants in the United States. "Gene therapy may pave the way for non-surgical options to treat FED patients through better understanding at the molecular level of the degree of FED impairment," Dr. Soni said.

Problems with the corneal endothelium can occur in hereditary conditions such as Fuchs which can result in painful corneal blindness. Corneal transplantation is currently the principle treatment option. <<more>>

Expansion Plans for 2011

Treating 10,000 patients in 2010, ASCRS Foundation's Robert M. Sinskey Eye Institute in Ethiopia is a major success story. A leading figure behind that success is Dr. Kefyalew Regassa Gobena, the Sinskey Eye Institute’s Staff Ophthalmologist.

Having had early aspirations to become an engineer, Dr. Kefyalew changed his plans after several stays in the hospital opened his eyes to the impact doctors could have on their patients.

In medical school Dr. Kefyalew was greatly influenced by one of his professors. "My professor in ophthalmology was a great woman in her profession," he noted. Dr. Kefyalew was impressed by the way she handled her patients, especially the cases of cataracts and anterior uveitis with keratic precipitates (KPs) that she treated. "It was miraculous to see a patient blinded by cataracts regain their sight. That's when I decided to become an ophthalmologist." <<more>>

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