Fellows treat diverse surgical pathologies

The fellowship provides a comprehensive clinical experience in all areas of medical and surgical vitreoretinal disease with opportunities for in-depth subspecialty experiences in uveitis, oncology, retinal dystrophy, genetics, and pediatric retinal disease. The fellowship is directed by Dr. William Freeman and fellows are supervised by 8 retina specialists including a surgical retina/uveitis specialist, two surgical retina/ocular oncology specialists, an adult & pediatric surgical retina specialist, a surgical retina/electrophysiology specialist, and a medical retina/retinal dystrophy specialist.  

This is one of the highest surgical volume fellowships in the state, and most fellows exceed 500 primary vitrectomies by the end of 2 years. Fellows treat diverse surgical pathologies from epiretinal membranes and macular holes to complex diabetic traction retinal detachments. In addition to vitrectomies, fellows quickly become proficient in various scleral buckling techniques including encircling bands, sponges, and radial elements, secondary IOLs (Yamane and sutured Akreos), cryotherapy, and pneumatic retinopexy. Our surgical experience includes opportunities to work with the BIOM, Resight, and contact visualization systems, Leica and Zeiss microscopes, and the Alcon Ngenuity and Zeiss DigitalOptics 3D heads-up visualization systems. Surgeries are performed using the Alcon Constellation Vision System. Surgeries take place in the dedicated ambulatory surgery center (ASC) located inside the UCSD Shiley Eye Institute in La Jolla, at the Veterans Administration Medical Center and at UCSD Medical Center in Hillcrest. In the clinic, fellows can use the Topcon PASCAL pattern laser to perform laser photocoagulation.  

Fellows will be involved in research projects and funding is available to support presentations at the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO) and American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) annual meetings as well as other local, regional, and national meetings. Fellows also have the opportunity to attend educational activities such as the Duke Fellows Advanced Vitreous Surgery course. Retina fellows typically author several peer-reviewed publications by the end of their fellowship. We believe that involvement in research enhances clinical acumen and the ability of fellows to function as independent retinal specialists and consultants. Experience conducting research helps fellows learn to critically evaluate other’s research and stay current with developments in our field.  

In addition to becoming experts in conventional therapeutic interventions, fellows are also co-investigators on the clinical trials conducted at Shiley. Fellows will gain experience administering experimental therapies including intravitreal injections of new drugs for neovascular AMD and geographic atrophy, intravitreal implants, small interfering RNA, and other new therapies as part of clinical trials.  

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