Department of Ophthalmology at the Kasturba Medical College, Manipal has been providing world class Ophthalmology services. Established in the late 1950’s, the department prospered into a centre for excellence under the visionary leadership of Dr. P. N. Srinivasa Rao. The department has kept abreast with the latest technological developments and inventions in the field of ophthalmology having many firsts to its credit.

The community outreach programs in the form of surgical camps, school screening programs, diabetic retinopathy screening programs, awareness creation and public education are conducted regularly.

Postgraduate program was started in the year 1972. Till now total of 346 (MS and DO) postgraduates have been trained.  

Team of expert doctors who have specialized in various ophthalmic sub specialities strive to provide evidence based, state of the art treatment to the patients along with undergraduate and postgraduate training and research activities. The department has trained ophthalmologists catering to various sub specialties in Ophthalmology like Cornea, Glaucoma, Uvea, Pediatric ophthalmology, Neuro-ophthalmology, Retinopathy of prematurity, vitreo-retina, oculoplasty and community ophthalmology.  Subspecialty exposure has improved Postgraduate and undergraduate training. The department has state-of-the art infrastructure and equipment, trained faculty, adjunct faculty and inter-institutional collaboration which have helped the department to standout with surgical skills and innovative research.   

Our OEU Alumni Association has 346 members and we have regular alumni meetings every four years at Manipal.  The Alumni association also endows oration awards in the memory of Late Prof. P. N. Srinivasa Rao, Founding HOD of Ophthalmology and Late Dr. Babu Rajendran 1st postgraduate student from Dept. of Ophthalmology. KMC, Manipal.

OEU (Operation Eyesight Universal)  Aklumni association of Department of Ophthalmology in Kasturaba Medical College Manipal was started under the eminent leadership of Late Dr P N Srinivasa Rao. In 1971 postgraduation was started in the department with Late Dr Babu Rajendran and Dr Shobha Dutt being the first batch. OEU Alumni association initially started as a casual proposal of the like-minded alumni of the department when our founder mentor Dr P N Srinivasa Rao was nearing retirement. With over 350 members spanned across the globe, the alumni actively participates in conducting national as well as international webinars in association with the parent OEU department of KMC Manipal. Many alumni who are experts in their subspecialities also paly a role as Adjunct faculty of our department. OEU Alumni association also initiated the coveted Oration award in the memory of Late Dr P N S Rao and Dr Babu Rajendran.

List of current PhD students and PhD awarded by department with year can be given as table. 

https://manipal.edu/mu/academics/phd.html

Our clinical services include Phaco refractive surgery with Premium intra ocular lenses (IOLs), Pediatric Cataract surgery and various sub specialties in Ophthalmology like Cornea, Glaucoma, Uvea, Pediatric ophthalmology, Neuro-ophthalmology, Retinopathy of prematurity, Vitreo-Retina, Occuloplasty. Also, we have anterior segment lasers (Capsulotomy, Iridotomy) and Retinal lasers available in our department. Community Ophthalmology services are our fame since the inception of the department. 

Our Diagnostic services include A scan, B scan, Keratometry, Autorefractometry, IOL master, Ultrasound biomicroscopy, Anterior segment photography, Goldmann perimetry, Humphrey’s Field Analyser, Fundus fluorescene angiography, Optical Coherence Tomography. Our retina services is one of the few in Karnataka with the novel OCT Angioplex.

The Kasturba Hospital Eye Bank:

Kasturba Hospital Eye Bank (KHEB) have been serving patients with corneal blindness since 1981. KHEB caters to districts like Udupi, Shivamogga, Davangere, South Canara, North Canara and Chikkamagalur by collecting and distributing tissues like Cornea and Sclera.

The Kasturba Hospital Eye Bank (KHEB) is one of the largest providers of sight restoring corneas in coastal Karnataka. Since its inception in 1980s, KHEB has greatly increased the collection of transplantable donor corneas, thus enabling several successful corneal transplants. It is very active in promotion of eye donation awareness programs at the community level. Research activities include PG dissertation involving the development of a novel corneal storage media.

Ongoing Research

Funded Research projects of the department:

1.   Project Name: Drug Delivery Implant for Post Cataract Treatment

             The department has received BIG BIRAC grant (50 lakhs) along with the department

             of biotechnology MIT Manipal, for Nano particle drug delivery implant after cataract surgery. Has a 

             start-up company called Vyabya Ocular innovations Pvt Ltd

Postgraduates ongoing research includes study on:

1. Early Hydroxychloroquine Retinopathy- Optical Coherence Tomography Abnormalities Preceding Humphrey Visual Field Defects: Dr. Premjith Menon, Dr. Vijaya Pai (Guide), Dr. Sudha G Menon (Co guide)

2. Analysis of risk factors for retinopathy of prematurity in AGA vs SGA preterm infants in a tertiary care hospital in Karnataka: Dr. Arya Wagle, Dr. Sulatha V Bhandary (Guide), Dr Leslie Edward Lewis (Co-guide) Department of Neonatology, KMC, Manipal.

3. The effect of specific techniques of nasal breathing on intra-ocular pressure: Dr. Alisha Kulkarni, Dr. Yogish S Kamath (Guide), Dr. Neetha K I R (Co-guide)

4. The evaluation of biochemical and microbiological aspects of tear film in neonates using gel electrophoresis / high performance liquid chromatography with laser induced fluorescence (HPLC-LIF) and culture methods. Duration of study: Dr. Alisha Rizvi, Dr. Sulatha V Bhandary (Guide), Co-guides:  Dr. Manali Hazarika,Dr Leslie Edward Lewis,  Department of Paediatrics, KMC, Manipal, Dr Kiran Chawla Department of Microbiology, KMC, Manipal, Dr. Santosh Chidangil, Department of Atomic And Molecular Physics, MIT, Manipal.

5. Comparison of the two cataract grading systems for nuclear cataract: Lens Opacities Classification System III and BCN-10: Dr. G. Abhishek, Chidanand Kulkarni (Guide)

6. Effect of Haemoglobin on Diabetic Macular Edema in Patients with Chronic Kidney Disease –An OCT Based Study: Dr. Nikhil Gopalakrishnan, Dr. Shailaja S (Guide) Dr. Shankar Prasad (Co-guide) Department of Nephrology, Kasturba Medical College Manipal.

7. Clinical Evaluation and Management of Ocular Manifestations in Children with Specific Learning Disorders Aged between 6 years to 14 years in Coastal Karnataka: Dr. Aishwarya Kulkarni, Sulatha V Bhandary (Guide), Dr. Priyanka Ramesh (Co-guide), Dr. P.V Bhandhary Consultant Psychiatrist, AV Baliga Hospital and Dr. Lavanya Rao will be listed as co-authors A V Baliga Hospital, Department of Clinical Psychology, MCHP, Manipal. Department of Psychiatry, KMC Manipal.

8. Efficacy of Ripasudil on preservation time of porcine cornea stored in MK (McCarey-Kaufman) media - An interventional study: Dr. Korpole Nilay Reddy,         Dr. Sulatha V Bhandary (Guide), Dr.Manali Hazarika (co-guide)

Dr. Srinivas Mutalik, Dr. Raghu Chandrashekhar Department of Pharmacy, MCOPS.

9. Determination of Refractive Error using Direct Ophthalmoscopy in Children: Dr. Sruthi Vijendran, Dr. Yogish S Kamath (Guide)

10. Ocular features in systemic tuberculosis in a tertiary level hospital in coastal Karnataka: Dr. Tejaswita Verma, Dr. Yogish S Kamath (guide), Co guide - Dr. Manu Mohan K. PTCD, KMC Manipal.

11. A study of Visual acuity measurement in ophthalmology tele-consultation: Dr. Bhatt Joy Vijay Rekha, Dr. Chidanand Kulkarni (Guide)

12. Assessment of Retinal Microvasculature in Diabetic patient using OCTA: Dr. Poonam Juneja: Dr. Shailaja S. (Guide)

Smartphone-Acquired Image Photogrammetry for Detection of Shallow Anterior Chamber: (Original Research) Clinical Ophthalmol 2021 May 6; 15: 1875-1885. eCollection 2021.Ravi Chandna, Neetha I R Kuzhuppilly, Yogish S Kamath PMID: 33986588 PMCID: PMC8110252 DOI: 10.2147/OPTH.S306835 (Q2)

2. Automated detection of optic disc contours in fundus images using decision tree classifier: Sumaiya Pathan, Dr. Preetham Kumar, Dr. Radhika M Pai, Dr. Sulatha V Bhandary : Biocybernetics and Biomedical Engineering Page No. 52-64 Volume 40, Issue 1, January 2020.Q2

3. A novel approach to measuring Binocular Visual Fields in Glaucoma :Dr. Neetha IR Kuzhuppilly, Dr. Vijaya H Pai , Dr. Ravi Daruka, Dr. Vikram Jain , Dr. Sudha G Menon:   Journal of Glaucoma (International) doi: 10.1097/IJG.0000000000001845 (Q1) April 2021

4. Improving the Performance of Convolutional Neural Network for the Segmentation of Optic Disc in Fundus Images Using Attention Gates and Conditional Random Fields Bhargav J. Bhatkalkar, Dheeraj R. Reddy, Srikanth Prabhu and Sulatha V. Bhandary. VOLUME 8, 2020, ISSN 2169-3536 : Page no 29299 – 29310, February 2020:  Q1

5. Small interfering RNAs (siRNAs) based gene silencing strategies for the treatment of glaucoma: Recent advancements and future perspectives. Life Sciences Volume 264, 1 January 2021, 118712: Santoshi Naik, Ajjappla Basavaraj Shreya, Ruchira,Raychaudhuri, , Shaila A.Lewis, Manali Hazarika, Sulatha V.Bhandary, Bola Sadashiva Satish Rao, Srinivas Mutalik. 2021 Jan 1;264:118712. doi: 10.1016/j.lfs.2020.118712. Epub 2020 Nov 4 : Q1

6. A study on Ocular Morbidity among Patients with Psoriasis Visiting a Tertiary Care Hospital in Karnataka, Southern India. (Original Full):  Ocular Immunology and Inflammation: Dr. Yogish Subraya Kamath, Dr. Sudhir Nayak U K, Dr. A Surabhi: Volume: 27, Issue 4, April 2019, Page No.531-534: ISSN 0927 3948 Impact factor : I-year 2.453,  5-year 2.167,  Impact applied year : 2016 (International): Q2

https://eprints.manipal.edu/view/subjects/

Books Published

1.  Dr. Manali Hazarika Venkatesh Prajna N:  book chapter titled “Ocular Physiology” in the text book “Peymans Principle and Practice of Ophthalmology.

Dr. Manali Hazarika : Book chapter titled “Finite Element Analysis of the Human Eye for a Range of Intraocular Pressure” in the text book “Advances in Control Instrumentation Systems” : R Vivek Suganthan, S Meenatchi Sundaram, SVe Ramesh, Thomas Rinu, R Pai, Shah Mohammed Abdul Khader, H Girish : (Volume 660 https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-15-4676-1_16 Springer, Singapore, 2020, 978-981-15-4675-4,

3.  Dr. Manali Hazarika:  book chapter titled "Eye Care Services in the COVID Era: Forging a New Destiny", in the text book " Covid 19: a multidimensional response " published in September 2020 by Manipal Universal Press.

4. Dr. Manali Hazarika:  book chapter titled “Pediatric Ocular allergies: an overview” in the text book of Handbook of Pediatric Allergy and Applied Immunology.

5. Dr. Sulatha V Bhandary & Dr. Yogish S Kamath:  book chapter titled “Management of patient in Ophthalmology” in the book ‘COVID-19 Clinical Management Protocols’.

6. Dr. Yogish S Kamath: All India Ophthalmological talk in Uvea speciality: “Immunomodulators in uveitis: indication choice of drug, protocols for administration” – Vitrual AIOC Program Book 2021.  

Department has conducted various CMEs on Advanced Techniques and Technologies including Phacoemulsification and Wet Lab Practice, Newer Minimally glaucoma surgeries workshop and Paediatric Ophthalmology workshops, webinars and e guru online academic sessions. 

     Glaucoma under Pressure! A CME on surgical management in glaucoma with live surgery-MIGS on 02.02.2020

CME: A Child’s eye view: 360-degree Paediatric Ophthalmology on 14.04.2019

Webinar conducted on “Orbital Mucormycosis”- COVID Black Magic and Retinopathy of Prematurity (ROP) ‘Born too soon - caring for the future’.

Webinar on Retinopathy of prematurity- “Born too soon -caring for the future” on 04.12.2020. 

Webinar on Rhino Orbital Mucormycosis on 11.06.2021

Postgraduate students Award:Dr. Rashmi and Dr. Linya Thomas, awarded 1st prize in Yenepoya Ophthalmic Intercollegiate PG Quiz was held on 06.02.2021 held at Yenepoya Medical College, Mangalore.

Dr. Vindya BJ awarded second prize in the free paper session titled “Sudden postoperative vision loss (POVL) following non -ocular surgeries” in the Retina (interesting cases)-1 in the DOS International Hybrid Conference held from 18^th to 20^th December 2020. 

Department possess excellent simulation lab and wet lab facility for post graduate and under graduate teaching

WET LAB

The research lab allows them to gain the skills required on simulation eyes or goat eyes before operating on patients. All the steps of surgeries can be practiced under direct supervision and guidance of our faculty and senior postgraduates. Advanced phacoemulsification machines like the Laureate is at their disposal. The lab provides means of training our students in routine as well as sophisticated surgeries like minimally invasive glaucoma surgeries which will give them as edge over their contemporaries. Many a thesis/ dissertation of our students are based on the experiments conducted at our lab.  

The lab is sure to awaken the scientist and nurture the surgeon in each of our students. "

Wet lab with Laurette Phacoemulsification machine for post graduate hands on simulated cataract surgeries 

Ophthalmology Skills Lab:

Facilities for Hands on Ophthalmolscopy and Retinoscopy skills training for Undergraduate and Postgraduate teaching.

Address:

Google Map: https://goo.gl/maps/CZakN8KAeSh8xCvc6
Email: ophthalmology.kmc@manipal.edu

Phone Number: 0820-2923059