The Cornea and Laser Eye Institute – Hersh Vision Group in New Jersey, dedicated to clinical care and research in LASIK and corneal surgery and the CLEI Center for Keratoconus is dedicated exclusively to treatment and research of keratoconus. Patients travel to CLEI in Teaneck, New Jersey from all over the world for treatment due to our excellence in continuing research, clinical trials and dedication to the field of cornea, vision correction surgery, keratoconus, and specialty contact lenses. Below is our story.
Our story begins with Dr. Peter S. Hersh.
Dr. Hersh graduated from Princeton University and received his M.D. from Johns Hopkins Medical School. He completed his ophthalmology residency at Harvard Medical School where afterwards he received specialized fellowship training in corneal surgery. Dr. Hersh remained on the full-time faculty at Harvard for several years. In 1995, he founded the Cornea and Laser Eye Institute – Hersh Vision Group in New Jersey, dedicated to clinical care and research in LASIK and corneal surgery. He founded the CLEI Center for Keratoconus in 2002, a subspecialty center focused on treatment and research in keratoconus. Currently, in addition to directing the Cornea and Laser Eye Institute and CLEI Center for Keratoconus, Dr. Hersh is Clinical Professor of Ophthalmology and Director of the Cornea and Refractive Surgery Division at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, and Visiting Research Collaborator at Princeton University.
Dr. Hersh’s interests are devoted exclusively to the cornea. His subspecialty corneal surgery expertise includes LASIK, custom LASIK, topography-guided LASIK, Intralase femtosecond laser procedures, LASEK, PRK, CK, Intacs, Keratoconus treatments, corneal transplantation and other corneal, laser, and refractive surgery procedures. At Princeton, he works with the Department of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering investigating new laser applications to eye surgery.
Dr. Hersh has participated in many FDA clinical Dr. Hersh performing LASIK Eye Surgery trials of excimer laser LASIK and other surgical corrections of nearsightedness, farsightedness, astigmatism, and keratoconus. Most prominently, he was lead author of the clinical study that led to the very first FDA approval of laser eye surgery for the treatment of nearsightedness in the United States in 1995. He also was one of 2 investigators to present the Conductive Keratoplasty procedure to the FDA device panel, resulting in its 2002 approval. More recently, Dr. Hersh served as medical monitor and was lead author of the two studies leading to U.S. FDA approvals of corneal collagen crosslinking (CXL) for keratoconus and corneal ectasia He is also the only U.S. surgeon to be investigating a new treatment for nearsightedness and keratoconus.
As a result of his extensive clinical and research work, Dr. Hersh has published four textbooks and more than 100 research articles and book chapters. His widely used eye surgery textbook, Ophthalmic Surgical Procedures, first published in 1988, is now being rewritten for its 3rd Edition. His other books include Excimer Laser Surgery for Corneal Disorders, Refractive Surgery, and Eye Trauma. In addition, Dr. Hersh has designed a number of refractive surgery instruments in current use, most recently the Hersh Intralase LASIK Flap Spatula.
Dr. Hersh has been elected to the American Ophthalmological Society, the oldest and most prestigious eye surgery association in the country. He has also been awarded the Senior Honor Award from the American Academy of Ophthalmology, an honor bestowed on fewer than 1% of eye surgeons and most recently, as of 2020 Dr. Hersh is a Life Fellow of AAO. He has been selected for Best Doctors in America for over 14 years running. He is the only LASIK and corneal surgery specialist to be listed in New York Magazine, New Jersey Monthly, and New Jersey Life as one of the top doctors in the New York metropolitan area. In 2017, he was voted by the patients to be the National Keratoconus Foundation as Top Doctor, and has been nominated every year since the founding of the award. He and his work have also been featured on the Today Show, PBS, America Tonight, Fox News, People Magazine, the New York Times, the Bergen Record, the Newark Star Ledger, and other national media.
Dr. Hersh has trained over a thousand eye surgeons in excimer laser refractive surgery techniques, and is past recipient of the Teacher of the Year award bestowed by the Harvard Medical School Department of Ophthalmology. His extensive lecture schedule has taken him throughout the United States and to countries such as France, the Netherlands, China, Taiwan, India, Vietnam, Brazil, Chile, Venezuela, Portugal, Switzerland, Italy, Canada, and Korea. Moreover, he is actively involved in a number of international projects to bring education and eye care to developing countries. As a result of his philanthropic work, he was awarded a Paul Harris Fellowship from Rotary International.
Dr. Hersh has a longstanding interest in sports eye injuries and was co-author of the book Eye Trauma. He is the Team Ophthalmologist for New York Jets Football.
Dr. Hersh would be joined by Dr. David S. Chu.
Dr. Chu received his Bachelor’s degree from Bowdoin College. He is a graduate of New York University School of Medicine and completed his ophthalmology residency at New York Medical College. Then he completed a fellowship in Ocular Inflammatory Disease and Uveitis at the Massachusetts Eye and Ear infirmary of Harvard Medical School.
Currently, he is an Assistant Professor at the Department of Ophthalmology at the Rutgers New Jersey Medical School. Dr. Chu specializes in corneal diseases and surgery and is nationally recognized for his expertise in inflammatory and immunologic conditions. His research interests include corneal wound healing, surgical and non-surgical therapies of various ocular inflammatory diseases, and novel techniques of corneal imaging. Dr. Chu is also involved in a number of clinical research studies designed to evaluate the safety and efficacy of new drugs and techniques in the treatment of corneal and ocular inflammatory disorders. He is an associate team ophthalmologist for the NY Jets.
At the Cornea and Laser Eye Institute, Dr. Chu cares for patients with cornea problems and difficult to treat ocular conditions, including uveitis, scleritis and ocular pemphigoid. He has extensive experience with the use of chemotherapeutic agents in the management of ocular inflammatory diseases. In addition, he has special interest in new surgical procedures such as amniotic membrane transplantation and state-of-the art corneal transplantation procedures including Intralase enabled laser corneal therapeutic and corneal transplant procedures (IEK), DSAEK, and anterior partial thickness corneal transplantation techniques.
Dr. Chu is an international key opinion leader in areas of uveitis, ocular immunology and cornea surgeries. He is currently acting as a principal investigator in numerous research projects and clinical trials. In 2006, Dr. Chu was the first to report the outbreak of Fusarium Keratitis associated with use of Renu with Moisture Loc contact lens solution in America to the Federal Health Authority. After the FDA & CDC investigation, he was credited for identifying the link between Bausch & Lomb contact lens solution and the sight threatening fungal cornea infection which was featured in the NY Times.
He lectures and teaches nationally and abroad along with providing cutting edge patient care. He is the first surgeon to perform DMEK and DSEK procedures, the least invasive forms of cornea transplantation, in the New York and New Jersey metro area. He is the Past President of the Foster Ocular Immunology Society and is a Board Member of the Ocular Immunology and Uveitis Foundation. Additionally he is the Medical Director of Eversight Eye Bank and Eversight International. In 2010 he received an Achievement Award from the American Academy of Ophthalmology. Since 2003 he has been selected as one of The Best Doctors in America. In 2003 and 2007 he was bestowed with the Faculty of the Year Award by the Institute of Ophthalmology and Visual Science, Rutgers New Jersey Medical School and received the “Man of Vision” Award from the Lions Eye Bank of New Jersey in 2013.
CLEI would gain 2 more specialists, Dr. Steven A. Greenstein and Dr. John D. Gelles.
Dr. Greenstein, graduated from New York University and received his M.D. from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine where he graduated with a special distinction in clinical research. Dr. Greenstein completed an Internal Medicine Internship, prior to the start of Ophthalmology Residency training at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School. While at Rutgers, Dr. Greenstein trained under Dr. Hersh. He went on to complete a Cornea, Refractive and External Disease Fellowship at Massachusetts Eye and Ear at Harvard Medical School. Additionally he is an Assistant Clinical Professor of the Cornea, Refractive & Anterior Segment Surgery Division of Rutgers New Jersey Medical School. He is an associate team ophthalmologist for the NY Jets.
During his time at Harvard, Dr. Greenstein had the honor of being awarded the prestigious Heed Ophthalmology Fellow Award. Dr. Greenstein was one of twenty graduating ophthalmology residents to receive this award.
Prior to and during his professional ophthalmic career, Dr. Greenstein worked closely with Dr. Hersh and The CLEI Center for Keratoconus completing a one-year pre-residency research fellowship concentrating on keratoconus and corneal cross-linking. Together, they published a multitude of articles in prestigious medical journals, including Cornea and Journal of Cataract and Refractive Surgery, on CLEI’s corneal collagen crosslinking (CXL) clinical trial for treatment of keratoconus and corneal ectasia. These papers are considered landmark papers out of the United States on crosslinking.
Dr. Greenstein specializes in keratoconus, corneal and vision correction surgery and is nationally recognized for his expertise in research and innovations of treatment in keratoconus. His research interests include surgical treatment for keratoconus and novel techniques for corneal surgery. With Dr. Hersh, he is pioneering the use of laser treatments and implantation of cornea tissue in keratoconus. Dr. Greenstein is also involved in a number of clinical research studies designed to evaluate the safety and efficacy of new treatments and techniques for keratoconus and vision correction procedures. He has been nominated for Top Doctor from National Keratoconus Foundation every year since 2018. Most recently he was involved in a clinical trial evaluating a new treatment for post laser vision correction corneal healing.
In addition to publications, he has presented at numerous scientific meetings on research related to Keratoconus. Dr. Greenstein has co-authored several book chapters with Dr. Hersh on Corneal Collagen Crosslinking for Keratoconus and Corneal Ectasia.
These extraordinary surgeons in collaboration with Dr. Gelles’ expertise in specialty contact lenses cover the comprehensive management, both surgical and non surgical, of keratoconus, corneal disease, ocular surface disease and vision correction. The foundation of specialty contact lens work at CLEI started with Dr. Donald Hersh, Dr. Hersh’s father.
Dr. Donald Hersh, the inspiration for the CLEI Center for Keratoconus, passed away on March 20, 2014. A doctor dedicated to the care of keratoconus and contact lens patients and a leading innovator in contact lens therapeutics over the decades.
In Memoriam: Dr. Donald Hersh, Director, Contact Lens Division, The Cornea and Laser Eye Institute and the CLEI Center for Keratoconus
A true pioneer in contact lens development, Dr. Donald Hersh began undergraduate studies at Rutgers University, completing his undergraduate degree at Columbia University. Graduate studies continued at Columbia’s School of Optometry, from where he earned a Master of Science degree. He received his Doctor of Optometry degree at the Philadelphia Optical College.
Throughout his professional career Dr. Hersh was involved in the research and development of new contact lens technologies. Most notably is the invention of the Hersh Palpebral Traction Lens which facilitates tear flow in patients with inadequate tear circulation or dry eyes. In addition, he was one of the early investigators in the use of monovision contact lenses for improvement in reading vision in older patients.
After many years in private practice. Dr. Hersh joined the Cornea and Laser Eye Institute and its Center for Keratoconus in 1995. He concentrated his efforts on specialized contact lens fittings and was an expert in caring for keratoconus and other corneal diseases, and for fitting patients after other eye surgeries (most notably LASIK and corneal transplants).
Dr. Hersh was one of the first diplomates of the Cornea and Contact Lens section of the American Academy of Optometry. He was past president of the New York Academy of Optometry. For years, he directed the contact lens service at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, teaching years of residents the art of contact lens treatments. Dr. Hersh also founded and directed the Division of Applied Optics at Rutgers, a think tank dedicated to the development of new sight restoring technologies.
Dr. Gelles continues this legacy of excellence in specialty contact lenses.
Dr. Gelles is the director of the specialty contact lens division at the Cornea and Laser Eye Institute and CLEI Center for Keratoconus. He graduated from University of Oregon and received his O.D. from the Pennsylvania College of Optometry. He went on to complete a Cornea Fellowship under Dr. Hersh. He is an adjunct clinical professor in Cornea and Contact Lens for New England College of Optometry, Illinois College of Optometry and State University of New York College of Optometry. Additionally he teaches residents of The Institute of Ophthalmology and Visual Science at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School.
His clinical work is dedicated exclusively to specialty contact lenses and surgical co-management for keratoconus and other corneal disease, ocular surface disease, and post-surgical corneal conditions. He is nationally recognized for his expertise in specialty contact lenses for visual rehabilitation in corneal disease and therapeutic treatment of ocular surface disease. Focused on the specialty contact lens, he works extensively with all varieties of specialty contact lenses such as custom soft, corneal gas permeable (RGP), piggyback, hybrid, and scleral lenses. His work has aided in the development of multiple diagnostic devices, contact lens design software, and specialty contact lens designs. He utilizes the most advanced contact lens technology and designs lenses through specialized computer aided design programs creating lenses unique to the condition being treated.
He is a board member for the Contact Lens Society of America, an executive board member of the International Keratoconus Academy, and an advisory board member for the Gas Permeable Lens Institute. Additionally his is consultant for multiple technology and ophthalmic companies related to corneal disease and specialty contact lenses.
His expertise in this sub-specialty has allowed him to achieve and continue achieving fellowship status with prestigious academies and societies. He is a fellow of the Contact Lens Society of America, the Scleral Lens Society, and the International Academy of Orthokeratology and Myopia Control. He is invited regularly to lecture both nationally and internationally on specialty contact lenses and keratoconus at both optometric and ophthalmologic meetings. He has been nominated for Top Doctor from National Keratoconus Foundation every year since 2017 and was awarded the Keith Harrison Outstanding Fellow Award by the Contact Lens Society of America in 2017. Furthermore, he is a frequent author to several professional publications including Contact Lens Spectrum and Review of Cornea and Contact Lenses.
In addition, he is clinical investigator for various keratoconus related clinical trials at CLEI and together with Dr. Hersh and Dr. Greenstein has authored papers on treatment and management of Keratoconus published in major medical journals such as Cornea and Journal of Cornea and Refractive Surgery.
Collaboratively Dr. Hersh, Greenstein, Gelles and Chu deliver comprehensive care for those with corneal cornea conditions, keratoconus, and those seeking vision correction. None of this care would be possible without our world class team.
Led by our G.M., Stacey Lazar and our research coordinator, BethAnn Furlong-Hibbert, this exceptional team provides for our patients and keeps CLEI at the forefront of Ophthalmology.
At CLEI, Dr. Hersh, Greenstein, Gelles and Chu and our amazing staff give our patients the four elements most important in choosing a specialist - the best education and training, unsurpassed depth and breadth of experience, the most advanced technology, and focused dedication to the field... This is all we do. Welcome to the Cornea and Laser Eye Institute and the CLEI Center for Keratoconus.
