Dr. Gary Kawesch is a leading expert in the field, and has performed over 40,000 refractive procedures. He is the Laser Vision Correction specialist for professional athletes throughout the Bay Area.

Education | Professional Associations | Specialty Certification | Practice Experience | Professional Qualifications | In The News | Formal Training in Refractive Surgery | Meetings, Lectures & Professional Activities | Research Experience | Patents


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  LASIK surgery checklist

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PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS

Dr. Kawesch is licensed to practice medicine in the state of California. He is a member of the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO), the American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery (ASCRS), and the International Society of Refractive Surgery (ISRS).

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SPECIALTY CERTIFICATION

04/95: Board Certified, American Board of Ophthalmology

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PRACTICE EXPERIENCE

07/92 - Present: Owner, Medical Director, and surgical ophthalmologist at the Laser Eye Center of Silicon Valley, San Jose, California, and the Laser Eye Center of the East Bay, Pleasanton, California.

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PROFESSIONAL QUALIFICATIONS

  • Performed over 40,000 refractive surgical procedures over the last 14 years
  • Expert in the field of vision correction surgery
  • Board certified ophthalmologist
  • Laser vision correction surgeon for the Oakland Raiders
  • Laser vision correction surgeon for the San Jose Sharks
  • Author of numerous scientific articles in the field of ophthalmology
  • Teacher of latest techniques in refractive surgery to local eye surgeons
  • Frequent source of information for local media (TV, radio, newspaper)
  • Expert witness for medico-legal issues in ophthalmology
  • Chair, NORCAP Review and Advisory Committee (review malpractice insurance issues for major insurance company)
  • Textbook reviewer, EyeWorld magazine
  • Voted one of San Jose’s Top Doctors by San Jose Magazine
  • Inventor and US Patent holder of a new device and method for measuring an individual’s vision
  • Textbook reviewer for Eyeworld magazine
  • Online consultation expert in refractive surgery for Ocular Surgery News
  • Reviewer of manuscripts for Journal of Refractive and Corneal Surgery
  • LASIK investigator for FDA clinical studies using the VisX Star laser
  • LASIK investigator for FDA clinical studies using the Nidek EC5000 laser

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IN THE NEWS

12/96: LASIK Tips for the beginning surgeon
EyeWorld, December 1996, p. 58

1/97: Informed Consent for refractive surgery
EyeWorld, January 1997, p. 34

4/97 LASIK: Results from 100 cases
EyeWorld, April 1997, pp. 58-59

1/98 Therapeutic LASIK: a case report
EyeWorld, January 1998, p. 34

2/98 Bandage Contact Lenses and PRK - Special Techniques
EyeWorld, February 1998, p. 33

3/98 Epithelial Removal During Hyperopic PRK - Special Techniques
EyeWorld, March 1998

2/99 LASIK - Roundtable Discussion with the Experts
Review of Ophthalmology, in press

4/00 LASIK for High Myopia with the VisX Star laser
Ophthalmology, April 2000, pp. 653-661.

2/03: Digital Infrared Photo Pupillometry-A new Technique for Measuring Scotopic Pupil Size
EyeWorld, Februay 2003

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FORMAL TRAINING IN REFRACTIVE SURGERY
7/92: Chiron's Radial Keratotomy Course, San Francisco
Faculty: J. Charles Casebeer, MD

8/93: Storz's Advanced Radial Keratotomy Course, St. Louis
Faculty: Miles Friedlander, MD

9/93: Chiron's Automated Lamellar Keratoplasty Course, San Francisco
Faculty: Stephen Slade, MD, J. Charles Casebeer, MD

6/94: Chiron's Automated Lamellar Keratoplasty Mini-Fellowship, Houston, TX
Faculty: Stephen Slade, MD

7/94: Chiron's Automated Lamellar Keratoplasty Second International User Group Meeting, Chicago, IL
Faculty: Stephen Slade, MD, Richard Lindstrom, MD, Charles Casebeer, MD

7/94: Chiron's Advanced Refractive Surgery Course, Chicago, IL
Faculty: Richard Lindstrom, MD

11/95: UCLA's Excimer Laser Didactic Course, Los Angeles, CA
Faculty: Robert Maloney, MD

11/95: Summit Excimer Laser Wet Lab, Vision Surgery and Laser Center, La Jolla, CA
Faculty: Michael Gordon, MD

6/96: VisX Excimer Laser Didactic Course, San Jose, CA
Faculty: Steve Trokel, MD

6/96: VisX Excimer Laser Wet Lab, San Jose, CA
Faculty: Steve Trokel, MD

2/02: Alcon LADARVison 4000 Didactic & Wet Lab, San Jose, CA

2/03: Alcon LADARWave Custom Cornea Didactic & Wet Lab, San Jose, CA

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MEETINGS, LECTURES & PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITIES

4/03: Annual Meeting of the American Society of Cataract and Refractive
Surgery, San Francisco, CA

2/03: 4th International Congress of Wavefront Sensing and Aberration-Free
Refractive Correction, San Francisco, CA

10/02: Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Ophthalmology, Orlando, FL

4/02: Annual Meeting of the American Society of Cataract and Refractive
Surgery, Philadelphia, PA

10/01: Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Ophthalmology, New Orleans, LA

10/01: Delivered Lecture: Refractive Surgery in the Year 2001 - What Primary Care Physicians Need to Know, Laser Eye Center of Silicon Valley, San Jose.

10/01: Delivered Lecture: Refractive Surgery Comanagement in the Year 2001. Continuing education course for optometrists, Laser Eye Center of Silicon Valley, San Jose

9/01: Keynote Lecture: Refractive Surgery in the Year 2001. San Jose Kiwanis Club Meeting, San Jose CA

8/01: Delivered Lecture: Refractive Surgery Comanagement in the Year 2001. Continuing education course for optometrists, Laser Eye Center of Silicon Valley, San Jose

10/2000: Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Ophthalmology, Dallas, TX

10/99 Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Ophthalmology, Orlando, FL

11/98: Delivered Lecture: LASIK for High Myopia using the Visx Star Laser. Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Ophthalmology, New Orleans, LA

10/98: Named CRS Clinical Investigator for FDA clinical trials treating myopia and astigmatism using the Nidek EC-5000 excimer laser, with the LASIK procedure

4/98: Delivered Lecture: LASIK for High Myopia and Astigmatism. American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery, Annual Meeting, San Diego

1/98: Delivered Lecture: Refractive Surgery Comanagement 1998. Continuing Education course for optometrists, Laser Eye Center of Silicon Valley, San Jose

10/97: Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Ophthalmology, San Francisco, CA

10/97: Annual Meeting of the International Society of Refractive Surgery, San Francisco, CA

10/97: Granted Investigational IDE by the FDA for clinical trials for treating hyperopia with the excimer laser, using the LASIK procedure

8/97: Granted Investigational IDE by the FDA for clinical trials for treating hyperopia with the excimer laser, using the PRK procedure

7/97: Delivered Lecture: Refractive Surgery Comanagement. Continuing Education course for optometrists, Laser Eye Center of Silicon Valley, San Jose

11/96: Named Investigator for the International CRS - LASIK clinical trials for low myopia

10/96: Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Ophthalmology, Chicago

10/96: Annual Meeting of the International Society of Refractive Surgery, Chicago

5/96: Delivered Lecture: Refractive Surgery in the 1990s. Continuing Education Course for optometrists, Laser Eye Center of the Silicon Valley, San Jose

10/95: Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Ophthalmology, Atlanta

10/95: Subspecialty Day 1995. Refractive Surgery 1995: Reshaping the Future, American Academy of Ophthalmology, Atlanta

10/95: Laser Skin Resurfacing Course using the Coherent Ultrapulse Laser, Atlanta. Faculty: Norman Schorr, MD

10/95: Annual Meeting of the International Society of Refractive Surgery, Atlanta

4/95: Annual Meeting of the American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery, San Diego

1/95: Tufts University School of Medicine Hawaii '96 Meeting, Wailea, Hawaii

10/93: Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Ophthalmology, Chicago

10/93: American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery Pre-Academy of Ophthalmology meeting, Chicago

10/92: Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Ophthalmology, Dallas

10/92: American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery Pre-Academy of Ophthalmology

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RESEARCH EXPERIENCE

1997-1998: Principal Investigator, private FDA IDE study. “Application of the VISX Excimer Laser System to Perform PRK for the Correction of Hyperopia.” Study Sponsor: W. Andrew Maxwell, MD Ph.D

1997-1999: Sub-investigator, CRS-USA, Inc. FDA IDE study. “Treatment of Hyperopia and Hyperopic Astigmatism with the Nidek EC-5000 Excimer Laser.” Study Sponsor: CRS USA, Inc.

1997-1998: Principal Investigator, private FDA IDE study. “Photorefractive Keratectomy (PRK) and Laser Assisted In-Situ Keratomileusis (LASIK) Treatment for the Correction of Hyperopia (+1.00 to +4.00 D) with astigmatism <1.00 D in subjects who have not had prior refractive surgery.” Study Sponsor: Gary M. Kawesch, MD.

1997-1998: Principal Investigator, private FDA IDE study. “Photorefractive Keratectomy (PRK) and Laser Assisted In-Situ Keratomileusis (LASIK) Treatment for the Correction of Hyperopia (+0.25 to +6.00 D) with astigmatism <5.00 D in subjects who have had prior refractive surgery.” Study Sponsor: Gary M. Kawesch, MD

1991 - 1992: Jules Stein Eye Institute, University of California Los Angeles School of Medicine. Working with Robert Maloney, MD, in the Department of Corneal and Refractive Surgery. Together we analyzed topographic changes following excimer laser photorefractive keratectomy in 50 patients treated in Berlin by Theo Seiler, MD.

1990 - 1992: Jules Stein Eye Institute, University of California Los Angeles School of Medicine. Worked with Robert Goldberg, MD, in the Department of Ophthalmic Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery. Project involved modeling socket contraction in rabbits; ultimate goal is to pharmacologically modulate contraction.

Summer 1986: Jules Stein Eye Institute, University of California Los Angeles School of Medicine. Worked as a researcher under the direction of Robert Yee, MD, studying vertical opto-kinetic nystagmus in normal human subjects.

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PATENTS

January 1997 - Granted US Patent, “Device and Method for Measuring Visual Acuity”

March 2003 - Patent Pending, “Device and Method for Improving Registration During Wavefront Laser Vision Correction”

March 2003 - Patent Pending, “Device and Method for Creating Wavefront-Error Correcting Contact Lenses”

March 2003 - Patent Pending, “Modifications and Methods for Improving Performance of Corneal Inlays”

 

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Residency
Jules Stein Eye Institute, University of California at Los Angeles. Completed residency in ophthalmology in June of 1992.

Internship
 Huntington Memorial Hospital, Pasadena, California.

Served a medical internship from July 1, 1988 to June 23, 1989.

Professional
University of California, Los Angeles, School of Medicine. Graduated with a Doctor of Medicine degree in June, 1988.

Honors include Alpha Omega Alpha, Lazar Medical Scholarship, California Community Fund Scholarship, Thornton Medical Scholarship, UCLA Alumni Association Scholarship, and the Adams-Baxter-Dongray Scholarship. Grade point average, 3.85/4.0.

College
Yale University, New Haven, CT. Graduated in May 1984 with a B.S. degree in Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry.

Received the following honors upon graduation: Phi Beta Kappa, summa cum laude, and distinction in the major. Grade point average, 3.9

Secondary
Ramapo Senior High School, Spring Valley, NY. Graduated 2nd in a class of 700 in 1980.

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