Author Archives: Laurie Birdsong

UNC Ophthalmology is pleased to recognize Associate Professor and Residency Program Director Alice Zhang, MD, as the Choroideremia Research Foundation’s 6th Annual Randy Wheelock Research Award recipient. The yearly Wheelock Research Award honors exceptional emerging clinical and basic ophthalmic researchers who are initiating or furthering their investigative focus on choroideremia (CHM). This lesser-known, rare X-linked …

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At several national eye physician/surgeon conferences this fall, the scholarly works and career achievements of UNC Ophthalmology faculty and residents have been in the spotlight. Among them: American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) 2025 UNC Ophthalmology Chair Don Budenz, MD, MPH, gave the Robert N. Shaffer Lecture: “Glaucoma at the Center of the Earth.”  Interview: Dr. …

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Every October, World Blindness Awareness Month brings attention to the blind and visually impaired community and the realities of living without sight. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), “everyone, if they live long enough, will experience at least one eye disease or disorder in their lifetime.” Despite this reality, healthy behaviors established early in …

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UNC Department of Ophthalmology is excited to expand its comprehensive and subspecialty eye care services within central North Carolina with the opening of  UNC Health Eye Care at Cary on Tuesday, September 2nd.

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September is dedicated to increasing awareness of Cortical Visual Impairment (CVI). This leading cause of visual impairment in children in the U.S. and developed world is a lesser-known type of ocular impairment that originates in the brain's visual center (visual cortex), rather in the eye.

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As adults enter their 40s, the decreasing capacity to focus on near- and far-range objects is a telltale sign of the toll aging takes on ocular health. For adults approaching mid-life, adopting early-detection eye health practices is a vital part of developing new routines that can offset declining systemic function. By age 40, a comprehensive …

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Every August, primary care practices push through volumes of back-to-school well-checks and early-age screenings. Among the anomalies that medical practices aim to identify in youth, emerging vision conditions are ranked among the most critical to screen for, address and prevent from worsening if caught and treated in the early years of life. Myopia (near-sightedness) is …

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In Chapel Hill Magazine‘s 2025 “Best of Chapel Hill” reader’s survey, UNC Kittner Eye Center has yet again been named to a select group of top ophthalmology/optometry practices within the Chapel Hill / Orange County (Carrboro & Hillsborough) area. Year after year, readers who value the top-tier eye care delivered by UNC Ophthalmology’s highly regarded …

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UNC Ophthalmology is pleased to recognize the achievements and impactful 40+-year career of retiring Professor of Ophthalmology Beth R. Friedland, MD. Renowned in part for her excellence in teaching next-generation eye specialists and her critical contributions to integrated patient care enterprise, Dr. Friedland has been a vital member of UNC Ophthalmology’s clinical faculty team since …

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The Arthur C. Chandler Jr., MD Teaching Award is one of the highest honors bestowed upon UNC Department of Ophthalmology faculty  over the course of the academic year. Presented at the annual graduation banquet, this award celebrates a faculty member whose extraordinary dedication to resident education, mentorship, and academic leadership exemplifies exceptional teaching in academic …

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Over two days in mid-June, UNC Ophthalmology hosted a daylong celebration of scholarly achievement and honored graduating residents and fellows for completing their ophthalmology residency and subspecialty fellowship programs.

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A collaborative team of University of North Carolina Department of Ophthalmology and Department of Statistics researchers have recently examined ocular trauma as a risk factor for geriatric mortality.

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