After undergraduate work at Emory University, Larry Baitch, OD, PhD, FAAO received his OD from the Illinois College of Optometry in Chicago. He subsequently earned a Ph.D. in Physiological Optics from the University of Houston, specializing in binocular visual electrophysiology and served as a clinical instructor and lecturer.
In the Infant Vision Lab of Dr. Davida Teller at University of Washington, Dr. Baitch was the clinical member of the research team that developed the Teller Acuity Cards, which is now the most commonly-employed clinical technique for assessment of visual acuity of infant and non-verbal children and adults.
As a Postdoctoral Fellow and later, Asst. Professor, in the Dept of Ophthalmology at University of Texas Southwestern Medical School, he performed NIH-funded research of brain function in patients with strabismus and amblyopia, and in primate models of binocular visual deprivation. He developed an electrophysiological method for quantifying binocular visual processing.
The University of Maryland School of Medicine recruited him as Director of Neurosensory Services, where he had joint Faculty appointments in the Departments of Ophthalmology and Physiology. He continued his NIH-funded research there until he accepted the position of Chief of Neurosensory Services at Sinai Hospital and Children’s Hospital of Michigan, Wayne State University. At both Maryland and Sinai, he streamlined methods for electrophysiological monitoring of visual function on sedated patients during eye surgery and during eye examinations-under-anesthesia (EUA) on children, as well as mobile emergency room electrophysiological assessment of the visual pathway after trauma.
He has worked in the field of refractive surgery since the pivitol FDA PRK clinical trials with the Visx 20/20B laser. He founded American Medical Vision Technologies (AMVT), a refractive surgery and service provider, which served over 135 client physicians in 26 states, performing over 117,500 refractive procedures until its acquisition by Sightpath Medical/TLCVision in 2008. He remains the only doctor ever certified as a factory-trained engineer on the Visx and Wavelight excimer lasers, and on Ziemer femtosecond lasers.
In 2010 he assumed the role of VP of R&D at Refocus Group, an ophthalmic surgical technology company developing the VisAbility Scleral Implant for restoration of near vision in presbyopia. Dr. Baitch’s research revealed the optical mechanism-of-action of the scleral implants; he also developed a methodology for using ophthalmic femtosecond lasers for perfoming sclerotomy.
Dr. Baitch continues to perform fundamental and translational research on ophthalmic devices and refractive surgical technologies. In addition to his private consulting work, he currently serves as Associate Dean for Research at the MCPHS School of Optometry, communicating on his passion for refractive technologies to future generations of optometrists.
MCPHS University School of Optometry
MCPHS University College of Optometry Rm 210-i
Worcester, MA 01608 USA
Telephone – 743-347-8949
Email – Larry.Baitch@MCPHS.edu
About: Larry Baitch, OD, PhD Bio