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William H. Swanson, PhD
Professor of Optometry
Associate Dean for Graduate Programs
PhD 1984 (University of Chicago)
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William H. Swanson received his Ph.D. in Biophysics and Theoretical Biology in 1984 from the University of Chicago, where he also completed a postdoctoral fellowship in Ophthalmology and Visual Science from 1984-1987. From 1987 to 1999 he performed clinically-oriented research on a range of eye diseases at the Retina Foundation of the Southwest in Dallas, TX, where he became a Senior Research Scientist and Assistant Research Director. In 1999 Dr. Swanson moved to SUNY State College of Optometry in New York, where his research focused exclusively on glaucoma, and he achieved the rank of full Professor in 2002. In 2006 Dr. Swanson joined the faculty at Indiana University School of Optometry, while maintaining collaborations with clinical researchers at SUNY.
Dr. Swanson has published numerous articles about his research and frequently presents his work at national and international conferences. He is a member of several professional organizations--including the American Academy of Optometry, the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology, and the Optometric Glaucoma Society. Dr. Swanson received the SUNY Chancellor's Award for Excellence in Research in 2001 and the SUNY Chancellor's Award for Excellence in Scholarship and Creative Activities in 2005.
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Research
- Modelling responses of retinal ganglion cell mosaics to perimetric stimuli
- Improving methods for measuring effects of treatment for glaucoma
- Peripheral color vision
- Temporal sensitivity
PSYCHOPHYSICAL MODELS APPLIED TO VISUAL DISORDERS
The long-term objective of my research is to relate functional deficits in patients with visual disorders to underlying cellular pathophysiology. A better understanding of these relations will be useful in design of clinical treatment trials, in selecting and interpreting tests for individual patients, and in guiding biomolecular and physiological studies. The research uses quantitative models, rigorous psychophysical methods, and carefully selected patient populations to investigate the linkage between functional defects and biological damage. This research involves both basic and clinical studies of color vision, spatial vision, and flicker sensitivity. My current focus is on development of new methods for evaluation of progression of glaucomatous vision loss, development of a quantitative model of neural processing in perimetry that relates glaucomatous visual defects to ganglion cell damage, and new methods for comparing structure and function. |
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