National Eye Health Education Program (NEHEP) Planning Group Member emeritus
National Eye Institute (NEI),
National Institutes of Health
President, New York Eye and Ear Infirmary of Mount Sinai
Chair, Department of Ophthalmology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
Mt. Sinai Health System, New York
Specialties
- Ophthalmology
- Glaucoma
- Research
Current activites
Dr. Tsai conducts research on glaucoma, a leading cause of blindness in which increasing pressure inside the eye causes progressive damage to the optic nerve. He has worked on the development of drugs to protect against nerve damage, evaluated the effectiveness of surgical treatments and developed advanced techniques for testing visual function. Dr. Tsai's laboratory has been active in exploring whether erythropoietin, a hormone made by the kidney that aids in red blood cell formation, can protect the optic nerve against glaucoma.
Publications
Dr. Tsai has authored a wide range of scientific articles, abstracts and book chapters on glaucoma, and has authored two textbooks, the Oxford American Handbook of Ophthalmology and Medical Management of Glaucoma.
Professional highlights
Dr. Tsai is a past consultant to the Ophthalmic Devices Panel of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and previous member of the Medicare Evidence Development Coverage Advisory Committee (MedCAC) of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. Currently he serves as an examiner for the American Board of Ophthalmology, chairman of the Medical Advisory Board of The Glaucoma Foundation, and chair of the American Academy of Ophthalmology's Global Ophthalmic News and Education Network Advisory Board. He was also recently appointed English Language Region Secretary of the Pan-American Association of Ophthalmology.
The National Eye Institute (NEI), part of the National Institutes of Health, leads the federal government's research on the visual system and eye diseases. NEI supports basic and clinical science programs that result in the development of sight-saving treatments.