Greg Parkhurst

After training with the first surgeon in the US to perform LASIK, Parkhurst has gone on to pioneer new trends in refractive surgery. “Nothing surpasses the privilege of restoring sight. Maintaining positions of leadership in ophthalmology is maximizing my scale-of-influence in that endeavor,” he says.

Named a Top Ophthalmologist by the Consumer’s Research Council of America, and included in the Super Doctor’s Rising Star List in Texas Monthly Magazine, he was the only surgeon under the age of 35 to serve as teaching faculty for the American-European College of Ophthalmic Surgeons. Parkhurst has also acted as principal investigator during numerous FDA clinical trials, ranging from CXL and presbyopic inlays to MIGS devices and lasers. His advice to his ophthalmology peers: “Advance the profession through publication in the peer-review literature and podium education, and endeavor for leadership as physician-CEO of your own practice.”

A nominator said: “Greg is a star. Serving for several years for the military to pay back his training, Greg is on the cutting edge of all cataract and refractive surgery technology and research. He is former Chief of Ophthalmology and Refractive Surgery at Fort Hood, and highest volume ICL surgeon in the US in 2009 and 2010. An author of multiple peer-reviewed papers and multiple textbook chapters on laser cataract surgery and phakic IOLs, Greg is also founding member of the American-European Congress of Ophthalmic Surgery and the Refractive Surgery Alliance, and current president elect.”

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