Glaucoma Specialist H. Dunbar Hoskins Jr., MD, Dies at 84

Glaucoma specialist H. Dunbar Hoskins Jr., MD, a longtime executive of the American Academy of Ophthalmology who helped shape the society, died Jan. 27, the AAO reported. Hoskins was 84.

He served as the AAO’s executive vice president from 1993 to 2009.

Hoskins grew the organization into the world’s largest association of eye physicians and surgeons and guided it into the digital era, the AAO said.

Hoskins also is credited with:

—Launching the Ophthalmic News and Education (ONE) Network, a global platform for ophthalmic education that has been especially impactful for ophthalmologists in under-resourced regions.

—Providing early guidance on EyeWiki, a community-generated eye encyclopedia that the AAO says gets nearly 20 million page views annually.

—Launching EyeSmart, a website that provides the public with timely, accurate information about eye health and safety.

—Developing the first computer-based registry, the National Eyecare Outcomes Network (NEON) Cataract Surgery Database, an early iteration of today’s IRIS Registry.

—Establishing EyeNet Magazine, an AAO news magazine that delivers practical clinical information.

In addition, Hoskins authored more than 90 publications in peer-reviewed journals. His clinical research included trials of carbonic anhydrase inhibitors and timolol for glaucoma; reliability indicators for visual field changes; the use of portable applanation tonometers; and innovative treatments for childhood glaucomas. 

He was a practicing ophthalmologist and glaucoma specialist with Shaffer Associates Medical Group of San Francisco for 45 years.

He also was a clinical professor of ophthalmology at the University of California, San Francisco.

In 1978, he co-founded the Glaucoma Research Foundation, an organization that provides education to glaucoma patients and has funded more than $70 million in glaucoma research.

In addition, he was a founding director of the American Glaucoma Society in 1985.