American Academy of Ophthalmology announces new award, its highest honor

SAN FRANCISCO –Beginning this year, the American Academy of Ophthalmology's Board of Trustees will bestow its highest award, the Laureate Award, on those individuals who have made the most significant contributions to the science of ophthalmology. This year's inaugural recipients are Charles D. Kelman, MD, Robert Machemer, MD and Charles L. Schepens, MD. The awards presentations will be at the Opening Session of the Academy's Annual Meeting, Sunday, November 16, 2003 in Anaheim. Dr. Kelman, clinical professor of ophthalmology at New York Medical College and attending surgeon at the New York Eye and Ear Infirmary and the Manhattan Eye, Ear and Throat Hospital, has devised and introduced the major cataract extraction techniques over the past forty years. He also has designed a number of intraocular lenses.

Dr. Machemer, former chairman of the Department of Ophthalmology, Duke University, Durham, N.C., and now retired, was the first to establish a model of retinal detachment and develop a technique for retinal reattachment. He is best known for development of pars plana vitrectomy, a surgical procedure that allows removal of diseased fluid (vitreous) and scar tissue from inside the eye, for treatment of diabetic retinopathy, retinal detachments, and severe ocular injuries. Most recently, he has developed a treatment for age-related maculopathy that involves the surgical translocation of the central part of the macula to a healthy part of the retina to help the patient recover or maintain visual acuity.

Dr. Schepens, clinical professor of ophthalmology, emeritus, Harvard Medical School and Schepens Eye Research Institute, and president of the Eye Research Institute of the Retina Foundation, has conducted ground-breaking research in the areas of cellular metabolism, tobacco amblyopia, retinal detachment, pathology and surgery of the vitreous, scleral buckling, and photocoagulation for treatment of retinal diseases. His research also has aided in the development of the modern ophthalmoscope.

Academy President Michael R. Redmond, MD, said, "Individuals within our profession are continually taking steps to reduce blindness, and I am pleased that the Academy has created this new award to recognize individuals for a job well done."

The Academy's Laureate Selection Committee will review nominees annually. The award may be given to individuals who:

• Developed new techniques accepted worldwide
  
• Made a seminal invention or adapted a previous technology
  
• Introduced a new treatment method
  
• Discovered the origin of a disease
  
• Reassessed previous findings, resulting in a significant shift in treatment
  
• Established new standards of quality care in ophthalmology
  
• Made breakthroughs in genetic understanding
  
• Conducted primary research in new pharmacological products
  
• Made a significant advance in eye care worldwide
  

For more information about the Academy's awards and the Annual Meeting, visit the Academy's Web site at http://www.aao.org.

The American Academy of Ophthalmology is the world's largest association of eye physicians and surgeons--Eye M.D.s--with more than 27,000 members worldwide.

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