Malik Kahook

With over 30 patents filed – 20 licensed for development and commercialization, and four currently at the clinical trial stage – Kahook’s research is focused on advanced cataract surgery devices and implants, AMD, novel glaucoma therapies and advanced imaging techniques.

He is Director of Clinical and Translational Research, and serves as chief of the glaucoma service at the University of Colorado. He is also the editor of Essentials of Glaucoma Surgery, MIGS: advances in Glaucoma Surgery, and author of over 250 papers, chapters and abstracts. He has amassed a number of awards since 2007, including the AGS Clinician-Scientist Fellowship Award, the AGS Compliance Grant, the AAO Achievement Award, the AAO Secretariat Award and ARVO’s Ludwig Von Sallmann Clinician-Scientist Award, as well as being named New Inventor of the Year 2009 and Inventor of the Year 2010 at the University of Colorado.

Kahook says “My research focuses on efficiently translating new device solutions from the laboratory to clinical and surgical practice,” and his philosophy is “the keys to success are simple – work hard, answer your phone, reply to your emails, find your passion, and create a team that is invested in the patient above all else.”

A nominator said: “Kahook is well-published, and at the forefront of new ophthalmic advances – partnering with industry in multiple specialties including glaucoma, cataract and refractive cataract.”

Part of the Power List 2015

In 2014, we compiled a list of the Top 100 most influential people in ophthalmology – an endeavor that received a significant amount of attention and, it’s fair to say, caused more than a little controversy. For our 2015 Top 40 Under 40 list we’ve taken a different approach, asking: who are the young, up-and-coming individuals set to rise to the top of their field? That’s the question we posed to ourselves – and then to you – ahead of open nominations and a painstaking judging process. Our list this year almost halves the average age of the celebrated individuals, with many of them born in the same year as the iconic Sex Pistols cover – 1977. Though we admit that no list of this type can be definitive, it does clearly show that the future of ophthalmology is very bright indeed. And so, without further ado, we celebrate the movers and shakers aged 40 or under who show what can be achieved with determination, passion and inspiration.

Go to The Power List 2015