School of Medicine


Showing 111-120 of 138 Results

  • Ruwan Silva, MD, MPhil

    Ruwan Silva, MD, MPhil

    Clinical Assistant Professor, Ophthalmology
    Clinical Assistant Professor (By courtesy), Neurosurgery

    BioProfessor Ruwan Amila Silva, MD, MPhil is board certified and fellowship trained vitreoretinal surgeon in the department of ophthalmology at Stanford University Medical Center. He received his BA in Neurobiology from Harvard University graduating Magna cum laude with Highest Honors. He then received his Masters of Philosophy (MPhil) in Neurobiology from Cambridge University in England. Following this, he received his medical degree from Stanford University’s School of Medicine. Dr. Silva completed his ophthalmology residency at the Bascom Palmer Eye Institute, the top rated eye hospital in the country. While there he was awarded the Heed Fellowship, the most prestigious national award for ophthalmology residents in the country. Dr. Silva returned to Stanford University to complete his vitreoretinal surgery fellowship where he was awarded the Ronald G. Michels Foundation Award, the nation’s highest honor for a retina surgery fellow. During his fellowship at Stanford he was also awarded the prestigious Evangelos S. Gragoudas Award by the Macula Society. Following fellowship, Dr. Silva remained at Stanford University's School of Medicine as an Assistant Professor of Vitreoretinal Surgery in the Department of Ophthalmology. Since 2015, he has been named one of “America’s Top Ophthalmologists” by Consumers’ Research Council of America. He was also selected as a "Top Ophthalmologist" by the International Association of Ophthalmologists.

    Dr. Silva's clinical practice focuses mainly on macular degeneration and retinal vascular disease (such as diabetic retinopathy, retinal vein occlusions and central serous retinopathy). Surgically, he specializes in diseases of the vitreous and retina: including repair of retinal detachments, surgery for the macula (such as treatment of epiretinal membranes and macular holes) and correction of dislocated intraocular lenses. His research interests mainly involve developing novel therapies for these diseases (http://med.stanford.edu/artificial-retina.html) and have resulted in over 50 combined peer-reviewed scientific manuscripts, book chapters and national meeting presentations.

    Dr. Silva is a member of the American Academy of Ophthalmology, the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology, as well as the American Society of Retina Specialists. He is a Board Certified Diplomate of the American Board of Ophthalmology.

  • Kuldev Singh, MD, MPH

    Kuldev Singh, MD, MPH

    Professor of Ophthalmology

    Current Research and Scholarly InterestsGlaucoma, clinical epidemiology

  • Stephen Smith, MD

    Stephen Smith, MD

    Clinical Assistant Professor, Ophthalmology

    Current Research and Scholarly InterestsRESEARCH OVERVIEW

    Dr. Smith’s primary professional interest is developing solutions for unmet clinical and surgical vitreoretinal needs. Beginning in medical school, one of his primary focuses has been improving treatment outcomes in patients with retinoblastoma (RB). During his second year in medical school Dr. Smith published a manuscript on a novel technique to reduce the risk of tumor spread following intravitreal drug delivery in patients with RB. His work summarizing published data on tumor spread following intravitreal injection therapy (IVT) for RB has resulted in multiple platform presentations at national and international meetings, including an invited lecture at ARVO 2014. The results of this study influenced the growing trend toward broader acceptance of intravitreal chemotherapy in pediatric patients with treatment-resistant retinoblastoma vitreous seeds. A primary active area of research has included studying and publishing on ocular toxicity that results from the use of intravitreal melphalan and other agents for RB. This work, and subsequent publications from leaders in the field, has led to an increased awareness of ocular toxicity caused by injecting chemotherapeutic agents into the eyes of young children. This highlighted the need for toxicity data on additional chemotherapeutic agents for local delivery. To answer this question, Dr. Smith assembled an excellent group of collaborators and consultants, including internationally known experts at Bascom Palmer, Mayo Clinic, and Emory University. As a resident he secured a highly competitive career starter grant from the Knights Templar Foundation and used that funding and the expertise of his collaborators to carry out preclinical ocular toxicity studies of combination intravitreal chemotherapy for RB. His work in RB has led to a broader recognition of the challenges facing patients with RB who receive IVT and has led to a continued search for optimal local injectable therapies for patients with this disease.


    INNOVATION HIGHLIGHTS

    In addition to his work in retinoblastoma, Dr. Smith has been actively involved in developing technologies to improve outcomes for patients receiving intravitreal injection therapy (IVT) for macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy, retinal vein occlusions and more. IVT has become the most common procedure performed by retina specialists in the United States, with an estimated 6 million injections given in the United States alone in 2016. Dr. Smith has co-developed technology that simplifies and streamlines the IVT process, removing barriers to treatment and improving patient outcomes. His work in innovation covers pre-clinical and clinical development work, and has given him expertise in diverse subject areas including fundraising, intellectual property portfolio development, team building, and business administration. He is a co-founder of iRenix Medical, a biotechnology and medical device start-up company committed to improving vision through optimization of the IVT process.

    Dr. Smith remains dedicated to helping improve and restore vision and quality of life in patients with vitreoretinal disease. He is currently involved in both medical device and pharmaceutical innovation, and serves as a mentor for the Stanford University Biodesign Innovation Course.

  • Blake Marleau Snyder

    Blake Marleau Snyder

    Clinical Instructor, Ophthalmology
    Affiliate, Ophthalmology Clinic and Education

    BioBlake Marleau Snyder, MD, is a board-eligible ophthalmologist and Clinical Instructor at Stanford’s Byers Eye Institute whose work focuses on global ophthalmology, equitable access to eye care, and the prevention of avoidable blindness. He completed Stanford’s Global Ophthalmology Fellowship, in partnership with Cure Blindness, following subspecialty training in uveitis and medical cornea at UCSF and the Francis I. Proctor Foundation. He completed his ophthalmology residency at UC Davis, where he served as Chief Resident and co-authored policy work that helped advance legislation in Congress addressing corneal donation access for minority populations. At Stanford, he works with Department Chair Jeffrey L. Goldberg, MD, PhD, to pioneer an initiative examining the cataract surgery backlog and barriers to timely eye care across 25 clinical sites in 15 Northern California counties. He also consults for Orbis International, developing a comprehensive uveitis curriculum and assessment content for Cybersight, and is the founder of Vision Without Borders, an organization focused on expanding access to high-quality eye care through education, innovation, partnerships, and responsible storytelling.

    Originally from Colorado, Dr. Snyder studied biochemistry and chemistry at the University of Colorado, graduating summa cum laude as the only student in his department to do so, with distinction and Phi Beta Kappa honors. He subsequently completed an Intramural Research Training Award fellowship at the National Institutes of Health, where he was introduced to ophthalmology. During medical school, he received a full presidential scholarship, was selected as one of six AOA Honor Society leaders, and received the Department of Ophthalmology Award at graduation. He later spent two years conducting international ophthalmology research as a Doris Duke/Fogarty Fellow with UCSF’s Proctor Foundation, contributing to work subsequently supported by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. His international work has included clinical care, research, and educational collaborations across Latin America, Africa, and Asia.

    Outside medicine, Dr. Snyder carries a deep curiosity and spark for life. Inspired by his favorite book, The Alchemist, he strives to remain a student of the world, learning through travel, new cultures and languages, live music, the outdoors, and the people he meets along the way. He values relationships and partnerships in which people learn from one another, grow together, and create more than they could alone. A Colorado native, he also finds joy in skiing, biking, and hiking.

  • Gayathri Srinivasan OD, MS

    Gayathri Srinivasan OD, MS

    Clinical Associate Professor, Ophthalmology

    BioDr. Srinivasan is a Clinical Associate Professor in the Department of Ophthalmology at Stanford University. Her clinical focus is on the management of amblyopia, strabismus, childhood refractive errors, and concussion-related vision disorders in children and adults. Dr. Srinivasan's research interests are amblyopia, strabismus, and concussion-related vision disorders. She serves as co-Investigator in ongoing clinical trials through the Pediatric Eye Disease Investigator Group (PEDIG), funded by the NIH, and chairs the Pediatrics and Strabismus subgroup within the Observational Health Data Sciences and Informatics (OHDSI) network.

  • Creed Stary

    Creed Stary

    Associate Professor of Anesthesiology, Perioperative and Pain Medicine (MSD) and, by courtesy, of Ophthalmology

    Current Research and Scholarly InterestsMechanisms promoting neuronal survival following cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury; utilizing microRNA's to target multiple pathways to promote mitochondrial homeostasis and cell survival; anesthetic neurotoxicity; astrocyte-neuronal interaction

  • Yang Sun, MD, PhD

    Yang Sun, MD, PhD

    Professor of Ophthalmology

    Current Research and Scholarly InterestsWe are interested in the role of inositol phosphatases in eye development and disease, using both animal models and human disease tissue. We are a translational laboratory seeking to understand the basic function of proteins as well as developing therapeutic strategies for clinical trials.

  • Christopher N. Ta, MD

    Christopher N. Ta, MD

    Professor of Ophthalmology

    BioChristopher N. Ta, MD specializes in the diagnosis and medical treatment of cornea diseases. His areas of expertise are in the treatment of ocular infections, inflammation, and ocular surface diseases. He has conducted numerous clinical trials toward the prevention and treatment of ocular infections. Dr. Ta also has extensive clinical experience in the treatment of ocular graft-versus host disease following hematopoietic stem cell transplantation.