Uveitis
The uveitis service within the Department of Ophthalmology at Northwestern University Feinberg School of medicine is comprised of four uveitis-trained ophthalmologists with high-volume clinical and surgical practices and multiple academic publications. Uveitis is inflammation inside the eye and can be due to multiple immune, infectious and malignant causes. We treat patients with uveitis and scleritis (inflammation of the wall of the eye), from simple to the most complex, serving as a referral center for the most difficult to manage cases. Our surgical services include cataract surgery, complex uveitic cataract surgery and ocular injections.
Education
Northwestern’s uveitis fellowship is one year of in-depth exposure to all aspects of uveitis care, led by Debra Goldstein, MD, a world-renowned uveitis expert. Fellows also work Dmitry Pyatetsky, MD, and Anjum Koreishi, MD.
We have very busy clinical practices with all types of uveitis. Fellows learn excellent examination skills, diagnosis and medical and surgical management, including managing immunomodulation. Fellows see the whole range of uveitic pathologies, including scleritis, acute and chronic anterior uveitis, intermediate uveitis (including pars planitis and MS-related uveitis) and posterior and uveitides (including sarcoidosis, VKH Syndrome, Birdshot, serpiginous, multifocal choroiditis, Behcet’s, tuberculosis, toxoplasmosis, syphilitic and herpetic retinitis) and intraocular lymphoma. We see patients with extremely complex disease and management, and our fellows learn to be comfortable managing those cases. Fellows will learn the use and interpretation of our amazing imaging services. They will learn to manage immunomodulatory therapy, including methotrexate, mycophenolate, adalimumab, infliximab and other biologic agents. Surgically, our fellows work with Koreishi and perform cataract surgery, including complex uveitic cataracts in adults and children. They also will perform many local medication injections. We have weekly grand rounds and biweekly retina/uveitis imaging conference, both excellent educational opportunities. Research is an important part of the fellowship, and fellows are involved in clinical research, including clinical trials, and are expected to submit at least one manuscript for publication. Fellows are supported to attend and present at national conferences, including AAO, AUS and ARVO. Fellows are funded and get to live in the amazing city of Chicago.
Research
Our uveitis service is very active academically, and all of our physicians publish in prominent journals. Goldstein has authored hundreds of articles and multiple chapters and lectures around the world. Our research encompasses all aspects of uveitis, including new treatment modalities and ophthalmic imaging in uveitis. We are involved in multiple national clinical trials.