Meet Our Team

Dimitri T. Azar, M.D.

Dr. Azar is an internationally acclaimed refractive surgeon and cornea researcher whose work has influenced numerous innovations in laser vision correction. Dr. Azar brings expertise from Harvard and Hopkins to Chicago. He completed his residency and fellowship at the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary, Harvard Medical School, and later joined the Wilmer Eye Institute at John Hopkins Hospital where he established and directed the Refractive Surgery Service (1991-1996). Dr. Azar returned to the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary in 1996 as Director of Cornea, External Disease, and Refractive Surgery Services and Associate Professor of Ophthalmology at Harvard Medical School. Over the next 10 years, Dr. Azar became Professor of Ophthalmology at Harvard Medical School and senior scientist at the Schepens Eye Research Institute. His research activities have focused on two main areas: (i) corneal wound healing, and role of Matrix Metalloproteinases in the cornea and (ii) Mathematical modeling and optics in refractive surgery and presbyopic treatments.

Memberships, offices & Committee Assignments in Professional Societies:

Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology American Academy of Ophthalmology American Ophthalmologic Society International Society of Refractive Keratoplasty New England Ophthalmological Society Association of University Professors for Opthalmology, Chair, Mentoring Program Chicago Ophthalmological Society LIERI Lions Club Alumni Advisory Council, UIC Fight for Sight Eye Transplantation Foundation International Society for Refractive Surgery, USA Representative

Clinical Activities

His clinical activities focus on the management of corneal, anterior segment, and refractive surgical conditions. He has contributed novel surgical techniques in the fields of penetrating keratoplasty, refractive surgery, and sutured posterior chamber intraocular lenses. He has also introduced several surgical procedures to Refractive Surgeries Services (including Laser in Situ Keratomileusis, laser epithelial keratomileusis, intracorneal ring segment surgery, and refractive intraocular lenses).

Teaching

Dr. Azar organizes and conducts the monthly corneal rounds, a two-hour conference preceded by patient examination (by residents, fellows and staff) providing in-depth discussion of interesting cases. He has also lectured at the Harvard Intensive Review Course of Ophthalmology and the Lancaster Course in Ophthalmology since 1996. He has lectured at several national and international meetings including the “Current Concepts in Ophthalmology” lecture series (organized by the staff of the Wilmer Ophthalmological Institute) and the American Academy of Ophthalmology meeting (as course director and/or instructor). He has been an invited speaker to several symposia, named lectures, and lecture series. His lectures have covered various aspects of clinical corneal diseases, management of topographical abnormalities after refractive surgery, corneal angiogenic privilege, and corneal wound healing after refractive surgery.

Textbooks recently published or edited by Dr. Dimitri T. Azar

Staff

Victoria Butcko, OD		Dolores Byrne, COT		Lisa Graben, COT		Jamian Coleman, Surgical/Financial Coordinator