Lucio Buratto, MD, is a leading international expert in cataract and myopia surgery and a pioneer in ocular techniques, intraocular lens (IOL) implantation, in the phacoemulsification procedure for the cataract, and in laser techniques for myopia, astigmatism, and hyperopia. In 1978, he began using the Kelman phacoemulsification technique and in 1979, started using posterior chamber IOLs. Since 1980, he has organized and presided over 48 updating congresses on the cataract and glaucoma surgeries and on laser therapy, has taken part as spokesman and teacher for more than 400 courses and congresses, and has organized 54 practical courses for the teaching of eye surgery. In 1989, he presented the excimer laser intrastromal keratomileusis, and was the first surgeon in the world to use it, while concurrently he started to treat low myopia using PRK techniques. In 1995, he was appointed Monitor of the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). In 1996, he was the first surgeon in the world to use the Down-Up LASIK technique that improved the previous LASIK procedure for the correction of myopia and for which he holds a USA patent. For teaching purposes, he has performed surgical operations during live surgery sessions for more than 200 international and Italian congresses and has performed surgery during satellite broadcasts to 54 countries on 4 different continents. He has designed and produced 143 instruments for ocular surgery. In 2004, he was a speaker at the Binkhorst Medal Lecture during the XXII Annual Meeting of the European Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgeons (ESCRS; Paris, France) and was the first European surgeon to use the new Intralase laser for refractive surgery. In 2011, he was the first western European surgeon to use the Femtosecond laser for cataract surgery. Dr. Buratto has been published in more than 125 scientific publications and 59 monographs (of which 24 are on cataract surgery, 5 are on glaucoma surgery, and 11 are on myopia). Recent works include Phakic IOLs: State of the Art, LASIK: The Evolution of Refractive Surgery, and PPRK: The Past, Present, and Future of Surface Ablation. Stephen F. Brint, MD, FACS, was the first physician in the United States to perform the LASIK procedure in June 1991, after working with Dr. Lucio Buratto in Milan to perfect the technique. He was the Medical Monitor of the first US FDA LASIK study and has been a lead investigator for both the Alcon Custom Cornea LASIK procedure as well as the Medical Monitor for all of the US FDA Wavelight Allegretto Wavefront Optimized and Custom studies. He graduated from Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, Louisiana, and completed his residency there as well in 1977, and continues to serve as Associate Clinical Professor of Ophthalmology. In addition to his vast LASIK experience of over 30,000 LASIK procedures, many with the Intralase All Laser LASIK technique, he is a renowned cataract/lens surgeon, having participated in the US FDA clinical trials of the new IOLs including the ReSTOR, ReZoom, and toric IOLs. Dr. Brint is Board Certified by the American Board of Ophthalmology and a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons. He has been recognized as “The Best Doctor in New Orleans” by New Orleans Magazine for the last 10 years and has been selected by his peers for the 2000 to 2012 editions of The Best Doctors in America. He is a leading cataract surgeon and instructor and the author of the 3 definitive textbooks on LASIK and cataract surgery including the most recent Custom LASIK. Dr. Brint performs surgery and lectures around the world, including Europe, Russia, China, Japan, Australia, Singapore, Africa, and South America. Dr. Brint has a passion for education and research, and, most recently, has been involved with the refinement of the intraoperative aberrometer for selecting IOL power and femtosecond laser-assisted cataract surgery. Luigi Caretti, MD, is the Chief Consultant at UOC (Complex Operative Unit) in the Eye Department of ULSS 16 Health Trust in Padua, Italy. He has considerable experience in surgery of the anterior and posterior segments and associated ocular structures; as primary surgeon, he has performed more than 5000 surgical procedures. He manages the Vitreo-Retinal Surgery Department of UOC (Complex Operative Unit) in the Eye Department in Padua. He has published 12 scientific articles in national and international journals. He has been appointed Director of Vitreo Retinal Surgery in the UOS of ULSS 16 of Padua.
