Our Initiatives

Age-Related Macular Degeneration Education Outreach

TheARF received a $175,000 grant from the National Institutes of Health and the National Eye Institute to fund a symposium at the 2008 American College of Physicians meeting in Washington, DC. This program offered a comprehensive examination of the challenges presented by age-related macular degeneration (AMD) from several perspectives. It was very well attended, with more than 100 general physicians in attendance.

American Retina Foundation Small Grants Program

The American Retina Fouindation is accepting grant applications for educational activities related to AMD and other neovascular diseases. Grants will be awarded in the amount of $10,000 or less. To see a full description of the available grants, click here.

American Retina Foundation Educational Travel Grants

Funds available through this program can be used for travel to a meeting or event of an educational or leadership value to the retina community and patient care. To see complete details and apply for an educational travel grant, click here.

The ARF 2008 Travel Award

At the 2008 ASRS meeting, Dr. Leandro Zacharias was presented with the Fellows Travel Award. The Foundation makes this award available to assist a deserving member with the expense of attending the Annual ASRS meeting. This is a tangible example of how the Foundation works to encourage participation in ASRS events across the spectrum.

Second Annual 5K Run for the Retina

For the second year "running," we hosted the ARF Run for the Retina, held October 12, 2008, at the ASRS Annual Meeting. The race began early Sunday and, although the course was challenging with rolling hills and uneven terrain, the weather was magnificent with ocean breezes keeping the participants cool. Needless to say, the scenery was absolutely breathtaking. More than 100 runners of all ages, men and women, joined the run, and everyone received a commemorative t-shirt.

In the men's division, the winners were: (1st) Scott Pfahler; (2nd) Gerhard Kieselback; and (3rd) Vincent Hau. In the women's division, the winners were: (1st) Joanna Fanning; (2nd) Martina Kralinger; and (3rd) Michele Mert. Congratulations to the winners and to everyone who took part. The event was such a success that we are already planning next year's run.

AMD Scientific Poster Awards

At the annual ASRS meeting in 2008 in Maui, Hawaii, the Foundation's board of directors viewed a total of 32 AMD-related posters. The judges selected one winner who was awarded a $2,000 prize. The winning poster was submitted by Sunir J. Garg, MD, and was titled Comparison of visual function measured by chart acuity with that measured by the field acuity analyzer in the Avastin treatment of CNVM with AMD.

AMD Advertorial in Reader's Digest

In order to promote our AMD Awareness Kits, we teamed up last year with a sponsor, Alcon, to run an awareness ad in Reader's Digest. The campaign encouraged at-risk patients and their family members to order a kit for self-testing and prevention of AMD. We have a large supply of these patient-education kits at the ARF office, and we encourage all ASRS members to order a complimentary set of 54 kits for use in your practice. In the last year alone, more than 6,000 kits have been distributed directly to patients through the Foundation office, as a result of the Reader's Digest promotion. To order your kit, please visit www.savingvision.org. We thank Alcon for supporting this vital program.

Revealing Retina Podcasts Available

To date, we have recorded 14 episodes of The Revealing Retina on XM radio station ReachMD (channel 160). This program has allowed Dr. Levit to interview some of the top physicians and thought leaders in our field on a range of engaging topics. These broadcasts have been archved as podcasts and can be downloaded to your computer or other listening device for enjoyment at your convenience. The titles of the podcasts are as follows:

Repairing Macular Hold and Macular Pucker—Allen Ho, MD
Artificial Retinas Restore Sight to Blind—Mark Humayun, MD
Technologies and methods for Visualizing the Retina—Richard Rosen, MD
Treatment Evolution for Wet Macular Degeneration—Cliff Ratner, MD
Accrediting & Certifying Medical Specialists—Paul Tomambe, MD
Wet Macular Degeneration—David Williams, MD
The Effects of the Healthcare Finance Game—Michael Newton, MD
Doctors: Unwilling Pawns in Healthcare Finance Game—Michael Newton, MD
Questions Docs Have But Are Afraid to Ask—Jerald Bovino, MD
Flashes and Floaters—Nicholas Zakov, MD
Macular Degeneration Treatments—Julia Haller, MD
Keeping an Eye on Macular Degeneration—Julia Haller, MD
Diabetic Retinopathy (2-part series)—Suber Huang, MD