Frank Holz

About Frank Holz

Frank Holz

Chairman, Department of Ophthalmology, Bonn University, Germany

Frank is a researcher whose many interests include the pathogenesis, prognostic factors, biomarkers and therapy of macular and retinal diseases with a particular interest in AMD. He also focuses on phenotyping retinal diseases using innovative high-resolution imaging technologies and development and validation of outcome measures for clinical trials. He has also been involved in several high profile clinical trials involving innovative therapies for macular disease. Frank is coordinator of the large-scale IMI2-EU-funded MACUSTAR project on intermediate AMD. He has contributed in the context of the international MacTel consortium in the understanding of macular telangiectasia type 2, including characterizing the natural history and identifying early markers of the disease. for the last three decades, he has been at the forefront of clinical research using the most advanced retinal imaging modalities and is one of the early adopters of fundus autofluorescence and OCT-angiography. He founded the GRADE Reading Center, has published over 400 articles in peer-reviewed journals, is Editor-in-Chief of the journal of the German Ophthalmological Society (DOG), Der Ophthalmologe, a past president of DOG, and president-elect of EURETINA.

What have been your career highlights?

“An inspiring two-year research fellowship at Moorfields Eye Hospital with Prof. Alan C. Bird at the beginning of my career.”

What are your goals for the future? 

“Contributing to a better understanding of age-related macular disease and help to find a cure. Many ongoing projects in this regard include the coordination of the large-scale IMI2-EU-funded €16 million MACUSTAR project on the development of clinical endpoints in intermediate AMD.”

Retinal Imaging from von Helmholtz to the Future