School of Medicine

Chair of Ophthalmology

The Department of Ophthalmology’s affiliation with Witten/Herdecke University enables a wide range of research, primarily of a clinical nature. Studies on vascular lesions, which play an important role in many conditions, are a prime example of this. Our areas of interest include, for example, the objective correlation between morphology and function; the impact of specific findings and therapeutic interventions on morphology and function; monitoring using ‘digital imaging’; and psychophysical issues.

In future, we intend to focus on genotype/phenotype analysis in collaboration with national and international institutes. We are also interested in the clustering of clinical presentations, therapeutic interventions and their complications in the context of new therapeutic methods.

Interdisciplinary projects – for example, with neurology, human genetics, pathology or paediatrics – underpin the systemic clinical significance of ophthalmology, as do planned projects in health care research.

We teach ophthalmology in a practice-oriented manner, drawing on clinical and scientific principles and establishing links with other departments. Students gain a direct understanding of the various clinical presentations through an empathetic approach to our patients. They learn to carry out the steps involved in a systematic collection and assessment of the medical history, a symptom-based examination, diagnostic clarification, differential diagnosis and the discussion of findings. From the initial contact with patients, through diagnostic assessment and insight into surgical procedures, right up to discharge, they learn about our discipline – with all its specific as well as interdisciplinary characteristics – in small groups in a practical and collaborative manner.

The symptom as the ‘tip of the iceberg’

It is important to address ocular symptoms or a discipline-specific clinical picture. However, we must often ask ourselves whether the condition requires interdisciplinary investigation and treatment, and whether the focus must therefore be on considering and treating the whole person. Is it an exclusively ophthalmological condition, or ‘merely’ the ocular symptoms of a – rheumatological, cardiovascular, neuro-ophthalmological, hereditary, endocrinological, traumatic, oncological or paediatric – condition, which currently manifests merely as the ‘tip of the iceberg’ of an underlying systemic disease? This clarification, which is not always straightforward, can be life-saving for our patients.

Learning in the clinic’s functional departments

Students learn this particular way of looking at things in the various departments and sub-departments of our clinic. The anatomical and disease-related specifics of our discipline are explained through diagnostic and analytical procedures during surgical interventions. An operating theatre simulator for intraocular procedures is available to students and our colleagues on an optional basis. Its use and preparatory training are already being discussed in some European countries and internationally as a prerequisite for surgical procedures on patients. An introduction to, the appropriate application of, and the analysis of ocular functional diagnostics are designed to enable our students, as quickly as possible, to carry out examinations themselves, record findings and interpret clinical presentations.

Working in small groups

We discuss all issues and findings daily in small groups. Together, we contextualise the insights gained within the framework of ophthalmological and evidence-based medicine. As a result, all learning content is taught in a way that is as patient- and disease-centred as possible, consolidated and integrated into the students’ knowledge. Through regular assessments and encouragement to undertake additional independent study, they acquire the knowledge relevant to clinical practice and examinations.