Dr. Joel S. Schuman, MD

Expert Publications

• Advances in laser sclerectomy.
• Laser iridectomy--1992.
• Laser trabeculoplasty.
• Malignant glaucoma: theory and therapy, from past to present.
• Sialyl Lewis X, Lewis X, and N-acetyllactosamine expression on normal and glaucomatous eyes.
• A malignant glaucoma-like syndrome following pars plana vitrectomy.
• In vitro flow properties of glaucoma implant devices.
• Antiglaucoma medications: a review of safety and tolerability issues related to their use.
• Effects of systemic beta-blocker therapy on the efficacy and safety of topical brimonidine and timolol. Brimonidine Study Groups 1 and 2.
• Developments in laser trabeculoplasty.
• Subconjunctival cephalosporin anaphylaxis.
• Activation of a tissue-specific stress response in the aqueous outflow pathway of the eye defines the glaucoma disease phenotype.
• Ultrahigh-resolution ophthalmic optical coherence tomography.
• Reactivation of herpes simplex virus keratitis after initiating bimatoprost treatment for glaucoma.
• Optical coherence tomography measurement of nerve fiber layer thickness and the likelihood of a visual field defect.

Clinical Trials

• Novel Diagnostics With Optical Coherence Tomography: Imaging the Anterior Eye

Media Releases

Get to know Ophthalmologist Dr. Joel S. Schuman, who serves patients in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Dr. Schuman is an internationally-renowned glaucoma clinician-scientist. He is a pioneer in the field of ophthalmology, lauded for his research, discoveries, inventions, and compassionate patient care over the course of his more than 30-year career. 

In 2001, he and his colleagues were the first to identify a molecular marker for human glaucoma. In 1991, he was part of the team that invented optical coherence tomography (OCT) technology, which provides quick, non-invasive, high resolution 3D mapping of the eye and has become an essential tool for the detection and treatment of diseases including glaucoma, macular degeneration, and diabetic retinopathy. Today, more than 60,000 of these machines are used every day across the globe.

Joining Wills Eye Hospital and the Vickie and Jack Farber Vision Research Center, Dr. Schuman is Vice Chair for Research Innovation, Kenneth L. Roper Endowed Chair & Co-Director of the Glaucoma Service. His areas of interest include early detection of disease and its progression, focusing on the invention and investigation of novel diagnostics for eye disease, most specifically for glaucoma.

Prior to this, he was the Elaine Langone Professor at the NYU Grossman School of Medicine, Vice Chair for Research in the Department of Ophthalmology at NYU Langone Medical Center, Professor of Biomedical Engineering and Electrical & Computer Engineering at NYU Tandon School of Engineering, and Professor of Neural Science in the Center for Neural Science at NYU College of Arts and Sciences. He also chaired the Department of Ophthalmology at NYU Langone Health and NYU Grossman School of Medicine from 2016 to 2020 and was Vice Chair for Ophthalmology Research in the Department from 2020 to 2022.

A native of Roslyn, New York, Dr. Schuman received his Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology from Columbia University and his medical degree from the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. After completing his internship year at Beth Israel Medical Center, he went on to do his residency in ophthalmology at the Medical College of Virginia and a glaucoma fellowship at Massachusetts Eye & Ear Infirmary.

His first study of vision actually began during his undergraduate studies at Columbia University in what was then known as psychology but would today be categorized as neuroscience. He was motivated by parallels drawn to visual perception in his arts and humanities coursework at Columbia. The notions of “how we see what we see” and “how we perceive the world” were central to his choice of ophthalmology. 

Dedicated to the highest standard of surgical excellence, Dr. Schuman is a Diplomate of the American Board of Ophthalmology and a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons.

Prior to arriving at NYU in 2016, he was Distinguished Professor and Chairman of Ophthalmology, Eye and Ear Foundation Endowed Chair in Ophthalmology, Director of UPMC Eye Center (2003-2016). Before that, he was at Tufts University from 1991-2003, where he was Residency Director (1991-1999), Glaucoma and Cataract Service Chief (1991-2003), Professor of Ophthalmology (1998), and Vice Chair (2001-2003). 

Teaching medical students, Dr. Schuman serves as a Professor of Ophthalmology at the Sidney Kimmel Medical College at Thomas Jefferson University.

Ophthalmology is a branch of medicine and surgery, which deals with the diagnosis and treatment of eye disorders. Ophthalmologists are experts in the diseases, functions, and anatomy of the eye. Ophthalmologists are also surgeons. They repair traumatic injuries to the eye and may perform cataract, glaucoma, and corneal surgery.

The desire to understand more deeply and to find new and better ways to care for patients are the driving forces behind the work Dr. Schuman does in his clinical care and research. He is currently working on research projects including stem cell treatment, artificial intelligence for imaging technology improvement, and novel diagnostics.

Among his remarkable accomplishments are 22 patents, dozens of awards and recognitions, and contributions to more than 450 peer-reviewed publications. 

Named in Who’s Who in America, Who’s Who in Medical Sciences Education, America’s Top Doctors and Best Doctors in America, Dr. Schuman received the Alcon Research Institute Award and the Lewis Rudin Glaucoma Prize in 2002, the ARVO Translational Research Award in 2006,  the Carnegie Science Center Award in 2012 and sharing the Champalimaud Award (a 1 million Euro cash prize), the AAO Lifetime Achievement Award in 2013, the Special Recognition Award from the AAO in 2015, the Fight for Sight Physician/Scientist Award in 2016, the Leslie Dana Gold Medal in 2017, the American Glaucoma Society Innovator Award in 2017, the Fight for Sight Alumni Achievement Award in 2018, the BrightFocus Scientific Impact Award in 2019, the Eye Foundation of America Robert Murphy Visionary Award in 2021, the USC Keck Roski Eye Institute Laureate Award in 2022, and the Pittsburgh Eye and Ear Foundation Muse Award in 2022.

Happily married, he and his wife, Carole, have three children – Alexandra, in business; Eric, a filmmaker; and Ari, a physician. 

Recommended Articles

• Conjunctivitis: When to See an Ophthalmologist and What to Expect

  Our eyes are our windows to the world, and we each get only a single pair in our lifetime. Life without our sense of sight can spell great difficulty. Imagine being born and living with good vision for decades, only to have it impaired by some disease we could have prevented or gotten treatment for....

• What Is Giant Papillary Conjunctivitis (GPC): Get the Facts

  Giant papillary conjunctivitis (GPC) is also known as contact lens-induced papillary conjunctivitis (CLPC) because it is the most common symptom with people who wear contact lenses. GPC forms small nodules on the inner side of the eyelids as a result of foreign body irritation. Moreover, people who...

• Is Lasik Eye Surgery Dangerous?

  Lasik or laser-assisted in-situ keratomileusis employs a laser beam to correct nearsightedness, farsightedness and astigmatism. These are refractive errors that result from distortions in the curvature of the cornea of the eye. Lasik selectively peels away layers of stromal cells that constitute the...

• What are the Pros and Cons of Lasik Eye Surgery?

  Lasik eye surgery, short form for laser in situ keratomileusis, is the most exercised surgical option for correcting eye vision discrepancies in America. Its immense popularity has a lot to do with the significant vision improvement it brings about completely dispensing eyeglasses or contact lenses....

• How to Get Rid of a Stye: 17 Home Remedies and Treatments

  What is a stye?A stye occurs when a particular strain of bacteria affects the oil gland of the eyelid. It becomes infected and causes inflammation, redness, as well as pain on the eyelid and its surrounding tissues. A stye is an inflamed swelling or circumscribed abscess. It can be treated with...

• What is Color Blindness?

  Color blindness is not a real blindness but a deficiency in seeing colors. People having color blindness can’t distinguish between certain colors, like red and green, or blue and yellow. The red and green color deficiency is the most common type of this condition.What causes color blindness?It is...