Natalie A. Afshari

Natalie Afshari, MD, FACS, is Chief of Cornea and Refractive Surgery and is accomplished as a clinician, surgeon, and research scientist. She received her medical degree from Stanford University and her residency and fellowship training at Harvard University. Prior to her current appointment she was Professor of Ophthalmology and Director of Centers of Excellence at the Duke University Eye Center. Dr. Afshari’s achievement in cornea & refractive surgery and patient care has been recognized by her peers in several of the “best doctors” lists, including “The Best Doctors in America” in each listing for the past decade. She is also the recipient of the inaugural Top Ten Women in Medicine Award by Triangle News. Furthermore, Dr. Afshari was awarded the academic Achievement Award and the Secretariat Award by the American Academy of Ophthalmology. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has consulted Dr. Afshari’s expertise for matters of safety and efficacy of various ophthalmologic treatments. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has honored Dr. Afshari by awarding her and her collaborators extensive grant support to study Fuchs endothelial corneal dystrophy, a genetic disorder leading to corneal transplantation.

In her clinical practice, Dr. Afshari specializes in cataract surgery, corneal transplantation, endothelial keratoplasty, collagen cross linking and intacs for keratoconus, laser refractive surgery, including LASIK, LASEK/Advanced Surface Ablation, PRK, PTK, and treating surgical and medical diseases of cornea. She is a highly skilled cataract surgeon and has held national positions on the professional committees of cataract specialists, including serving as the American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery’s representative on the Council of the American Academy Ophthalmology. Dr. Afshari is also a recognized expert in corneal transplantation and refractive surgery and has successfully treated many complex cases referred to her by other leading surgeons.

In addition to her successes with patients, Dr. Afshari has published extensively in both medical journals and textbooks. She is the co-editor of a two volume Cornea Book “Principles and Practice of Cornea”. While her textbook chapters focus on clinical skills, her journal articles report her innovations and findings in research. Her research has won her multiple honors, including the prestigious Research to Prevent Blindness (RPB) award and the Heed Foundation Ophthalmic Award. Additionally, Dr. Afshari performs sight-restoring procedure using keratoprosthesis, a synthetic plastic-based artificial cornea which has been featured nationally on television news programs.

Dr. Afshari’s dedication to research and clinical care also inspires her teaching. For her commitment to teaching and training ophthalmologists, she has received the Teacher of the Year award at Duke University Eye Center. She also has been invited to lecture nationally and internationally. Dr. Afshari’s peers also elected her to the cornea program committee and Awards committee of the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO), which oversees the scientific program of the largest eye research association in the world. She is also the Chief Judge for the scientific posters of American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery.

Several scientific and scholarly journals have sought Dr. Afshari’s expertise and recognized her research leadership by naming her to their editorial boards or seeking her assistance in reviewing the work of other scientists. She is currently on the editorial board of Investigative Ophthalmology and Visual Science. She is also an editor for Current Opinion in Ophthalmology cataract surgery, and has served on the editorial board of EyeNet magazine, a journal published by the American Academy of Ophthalmology.

When not researching or practicing, Dr. Afshari donates her time and surgical expertise as an international volunteer. She has traveled to West Africa, Central America, and Mexico to help patients who might otherwise go untreated.

Dr. Afshari received her medical degree from Stanford University and her residency training at Harvard University, Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary. She then completed a two-year fellowship in cornea and refractive surgery at Harvard University.