Prof Dara Kilmartin

Prof Dara Kilmartin was awarded the Kirwan Medal in Ophthalmology, UCD as an undergraduate and completed internship at Boston Medical Center, US and St. Vincent’s University Hospital, Dublin. He obtained first class honours in a Master’s degree in Physiology on eye movement research and underwent basic and higher surgical training in Ophthalmology in both the Irish and Scottish schemes at the Mater Hospital, Royal Victoria Eye & Ear Hospital, St Vincent’s University Hospital and Grampian University Hospitals, Aberdeen. After obtaining a Vision Research Training Fellowship by the Wellcome Trust, UK, his first subspecialty fellowship in Uveitis and Medical Retina (1998-2000) under the supervision of Prof John Forrester and Prof Andrew Dick, University of Aberdeen was spent on clinical and basic science research on Sympathetic Ophthalmia, an archetypical example of eye autoimmune disease.

He was also a Co-Investigator in the pivotal early TAP and VIP trials of photodynamic therapy for Age-related Macular Degeneration (AMD). Further subspecialty fellowship training was in Vitreo-Retinal Surgery with Prof Ian McAllister and Prof Ian Constable, Royal Perth Hospital/ Lions Eye Institute, Australia (2000-2002). He was appointed as a Consultant Ophthalmic Surgeon (2002)/ Clinical Associate Professor, UCD (2018) at the Royal Victoria Eye & Ear Hospital and Beacon Hospital (2006). He is the author of over 50 high impact peer reviewed scientific publications and three book chapters. Prof Dara Kilmartin has trained over a dozen international vitreoretinal fellows. Currently, he is a Principal Investigator in the international FALCON trial of brolucizumab (Beovu, Novartis) for wet AMD in the only Irish centre based at Beacon Hospital.

In addition to complex cataract surgery, he performs retinal detachment, macular hole and epiretinal membrane surgery and treats all aspects of AMD, diabetic retinopathy, retinovascular disorders and uveitis/ocular inflammation.