Stephen A. Updegraff, M.D.

Doctor of Medicine

Doctor of Medicine is a doctoral degree for physicians. The degree is granted by medical schools...

, FACS

Fellow of the American College of Surgeons

Fellow of the American College of Surgeons, often listed as "FACS", is a post-nominal title used to indicate that the surgeon's education and training, professional qualifications, surgical competence, and ethical conduct have passed a rigorous evaluation, and have been found to be consistent with...

 (born January 31, 1962, St. Petersburg, Florida

St. Petersburg, Florida

St. Petersburg is a city in Pinellas County, Florida, United States. It is known as a vacation destination for both American and foreign tourists. As of 2008, the population estimate by the U.S. Census Bureau is 245,314, making St...

) is an American refractive surgeon

Refractive surgery

Refractive eye surgery is any eye surgery used to improve the refractive state of the eye and decrease or eliminate dependency on glasses or contact lenses. This can include various methods of surgical remodeling of the cornea or cataract surgery. The most common methods today use excimer lasers to...

 best known for his early involvement in, and contributions to, LASIK

LASIK

LASIK or Lasik , commonly referred to simply as laser eye surgery, is a type of refractive surgery for correcting myopia, hyperopia, and astigmatism...

. He is a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons

American College of Surgeons

The American College of Surgeons is an educational association of surgeons created in 1913 to improve the quality of care for the surgical patient by setting high standards for surgical education and practice.-Membership:...

, a Board-Certified member of the American Board of Ophthalmology

American Board of Ophthalmology

The American Board of Ophthalmology is an independent, non-profit organization responsible for certifying ophthalmologists in the United States of America. Founded in 1916, the ABO was the first American Board established to certify medical specialists.The ABO is the founding member of the...

, and a member of the American Academy of Ophthalmology and the American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery. Updegraff currently serves as the Medical Director of Updegraff Vision in St. Petersburg, Florida.

Life and Career

Updegraff was born in St. Petersburg, Florida, and graduated from The McCallie School

The McCallie School

The McCallie School is a boys college-preparatory school located on Missionary Ridge in Chattanooga, Tennessee, USA. The school was founded in 1905 and now educates a student body comprising 230 boarding students in grades 9-12 and 660 day students in grades 6-12.- History :Brothers Spencer...

 in Chattanooga, Tennessee. He was exposed to the medical treatment of eyes at an early age by his father, ophthalmologist

Ophthalmology

Ophthalmology is the branch of medicine that deals with the anatomy, physiology and diseases of the eye. An ophthalmologist is a specialist in medical and surgical eye problems...

 Ambrose Updegraff, M.D., whom he accompanied on hospital rounds to visit patients who had undergone eye surgeries.

Updegraff received his bachelor’s degree in biology from Eckerd College

Eckerd College

Eckerd College is a private 4-year coeducational liberal arts college at the southernmost tip of St. Petersburg, Florida, in the Tampa Bay metropolitan area. The college is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools.- Campus :...

 in 1984, and his M.D. from the Penn State College of Medicine in 1989. He then completed a six-month internship and his ophthalmic residency at the Louisiana State University

Louisiana State University

Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, most often referred to as Louisiana State University, or LSU, is a public coeducational university located in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The University was founded in 1853 in what is now known as Pineville, Louisiana, under the name...

 Eye Center in New Orleans, where he performed research on excimer laser

Excimer laser

An excimer laser is a form of ultraviolet laser which is commonly used in the production of microelectronic devices , eye surgery, and micromachining....

s, focusing specifically on procedures such as keratomileusis

Keratomileusis

Keratomileusis is the surgical improvement of the refractive state of the cornea performed by lifting up the front surface of the eye by forming a thin hinged flap under which the shape of the cornea is changed by using an excimer laser or other surgical device, and was developed by José Ignacio...

. During a fellowship at the University of Texas-Houston’s Hermann Eye Center, Updegraff worked for Stephen G. Slade, M.D., then one of only two surgeons in the United States performing keratomileusis, and was a member of the team chaired by Slade and Luis A. Ruiz, M.D., that developed LASIK.

During its 1994 FDA

Food and Drug Administration

The Food and Drug Administration is an agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, one of the United States federal executive departments...

 clinical trial

Clinical trial

Clinical trials are a set of procedures in medical research and drug development that are conducted to allow safety and efficacy data to be collected for health interventions...

s, Updegraff performed the third LASIK surgery in the United States. He then became the first surgeon to perform LASIK in Asia

Asia

Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...

, where he demonstrated it and taught its techniques to hundreds of doctors in China

China

Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...

. Updegraff currently has seven patents on technologies for LASIK and microsurgery of the eye, and he frequently lectures and publishes on issues and advancements in refractive surgery.

Patents

• Apparatus and method for mechanically dilating the pupil of an eye (1994)
• Method of radial keratotomy employing a vibrating cutting blade (1995)
• Corneal surface marker and marking method for reducing irregular astigmatism during lamellar (LASIK) corneal surgery (1997)
• Corneal surface marker and marking method for improving laser centration (1998)
• Corneal irrigation cannula and method of using (1998)
• Corneal flap/cap elevator (1998)
• Corneal irrigation cannula (1998)

Awards and Achievements

1995-97 Advisory Panel, Ethicon Surgery

1996-00 Skills Transfer Advisory Board Member, American Academy of Ophthalmology

1997-00 USA Representative, International Society of Refractive Surgery Global Council

1998-00 VISX Star Surgeon, Top 50 Excimer Laser Surgeons, United States

1999 Outstanding Career Achievement Award, Eckerd College

2000 Best Presentation, International Society of Refractive Surgery

2001 Achievement Award, American Academy of Ophthalmology

2003 Outstanding Business of the Year Award, St. Petersburg Area Chamber of Commerce

2003 Performed first Crystalens lens implant surgery in Florida

2003-05 Board of Trustees Member, Prevent Blindness

2007 Kritzinger Memorial Award, International Society of Refractive Surgery & South African Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery

2008 Center of Excellence Award, Crystalens

2009 Best Paper of Session, American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery

2009-11 Dean's Council on Science member, Eckerd College

2009 Distinguished Citizen Award, West Central Florida Council Boy Scouts of America

2010-12 Best Doctors in America list

2010-11 Leading Innovators in Premium IOL implant surgery list, Premier Surgeon