Edward Holland, MD
Dr. Edward Holland, a pioneering ophthalmologist in the treatment of Severe Ocular Surface Disease, is working with a newly established foundation to launch Centers of Excellence (COEs) throughout the country specializing in site restoration procedures.
Dr. Holland has attracted worldwide referrals for medical and surgical corneal problems and for ocular surface stem cell transplantation, treating patients who have lost the ability to regenerate the ocular surface cells that provide a clear cornea necessary for normal vision. His clinical work includes Corneal Transplantation, Cataract Surgery and Ocular Surface Transplantation.
Located in the Cincinnati area, The Center for the Restoration of Sight is the only one of its kind in the nation. Since 2002, Dr. Holland has been referred thousands of patients and performed surgery on over 500 patients – and 1000 eyes – from all 50 states as well as Canada, Mexico, Guatemala, Peru, Brazil, and several countries of Europe.
“We specialize in patients that have injuries like acid or alkaline injuries, or chronic, severe medical problems that cause them to scar the surface of the eye,” said Dr. Holland, Director of Cornea Services at Cincinnati Eye Institute and Professor of Ophthalmology at the University of Cincinnati.
“The most severe patients end up with loss of the skin-producing stem cells called the limbal stem cells, which results in corneal scaring and then, unfortunately, severe blindness,” he said. “To treat these patients we transplant the specialized surface cells of the eye from a relative or a deceased donor. Patients then require oral antirejection medications similar to organ transplant patients.”
Dr. Holland is the Director of Cornea Services at Cincinnati Eye Institute and Professor of Ophthalmology at the University of Cincinnati. He attended the Loyola-Stritch School of Medicine in Chicago and trained in Ophthalmology at the University of Minnesota. He completed a fellowship in cornea and external disease at the University of Iowa, and then completed a second fellowship in ocular immunology at the National Eye Institute, National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland. He returned to serve as Director of Cornea and Refractive Surgery Service at the University of Minnesota. He was promoted to the position of Professor and was granted the Elias Potter Lyon Chair in Ophthalmology. He also served as President of the Minnesota Academy of Ophthalmology. Dr. Holland formerly served as the President for the American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery from 2011-2012. He was also a member of the Executive Committee and now serves as the Program Chair. Dr. Holland was a former member of the Board of Trustees for the American Academy of Ophthalmology. He has also been the Secretariat of the Annual Meeting for the American Academy of Ophthalmology. He was awarded the Life Achievement Honor Award at the 2012 American Academy of Ophthalmology Annual Meeting. Dr. Holland has served as the Chair of the Eye Bank Association and was the former Chair of the Medical Advisory Board for the Eye Bank Association of America. He is the past President of the Cornea Society and previously served on its Board of Directors.
Dr. Holland has been awarded the Castroviejo Award from the Cornea Society in 2013. He has also received both the Senior Achievement Award and The Honor Award from the American Academy of Ophthalmology. He was awarded the Binkhorst Medal by the American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery in 2008. He was a recipient of the 2002 Paton Society Award given by the Eye Bank Association of America. Among other honors, Dr. Holland has been listed in the “Best Doctors in America.” He has a national and international reputation for his knowledge and expertise in the field of cornea and external disease. He is frequently invited to attend lectures both nationally and internationally. Dr. Holland is the author of over 200 articles in peer review journals and has edited Cornea, the most widely read textbook on corneal disease and surgery.
As the Director of Cornea Services at the Cincinnati Eye Institute, Dr. Holland has attracted worldwide referrals for medical and surgical corneal problems and for stem cell transplantation. His clinical interests include Corneal Transplantation, Cataract Surgery, and Ocular Surface Transplantation.
