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EW NEWS & OPINION 36 March 2015 by Eric Donnenfeld, MD Tribute to George O. Waring III, MD L arger than life, America's greatest refractive surgeon, friend, and mentor. That is how I will always remember George O. Waring III, MD. By now, the academic triumphs have been listed and the well-deserved accolades recalled, but the legend cannot be contained or limited by an extensive list of his accomplish- ments. George died Jan. 27 follow- ing a stroke at the age of 73. If there was ever a person that I thought would live forever, it was George. He had the unbridled energy, enthusi- asm, and love of life few people have the opportunity to experience—and as he aged he only got better. The simple act of spending time with him was an adventure. The adven- ture might be academic, athletic, or social, but most often it was all 3— and it was not for the faint of heart. He might propose a new refractive theory that could revolutionize our field, then head off for a day of heli-skiing virgin powder, and com- plete the day with an evening (and early morning) of jazz. He knew how to live; he made an enormous difference; and his enthusiasm was infectious. Born in Buffalo, N.Y., on Feb. 21, 1941, George received his medical degree from Baylor Medical College, Houston. His ophthalmol- ogy training included a residency followed by a Heed Fellowship in corneal disease and surgery at the Wills Eye Hospital in Philadelphia. The PERK study, which he chaired, was the first prospective, well-run clinical study of radial keratotomy. This study set the standard for future refractive studies. He presented the data to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) that led to the first FDA-approved clinical excimer laser vision correction surgery in the U.S. As the principal investigator of the Emory-sponsored investiga- tions of LASIK, he received the first physician-sponsored Investigational Device Exemption for excimer laser refractive surgery from the U.S. FDA. Dr. Waring was editor-in-chief from 1989 to 2010 of the Journal of Refractive Surgery, and served on more than 20 other editorial boards. He published more than 270 original peer-reviewed articles and 70 book chapters. His authoritative 1,300-page textbooks Refractive Ker- atotomy for Myopia and Astigmatism and Corneal Disorders: Diagnosis and Management (with Howard Leibow- itz, MD) are classics in our field. The Waring Medal for editorial excellence is awarded annually by the associate editors of the Journal of Refractive Surgery to an author pub- lishing an outstanding paper in the previous year. George was an avid alpine snow skier, including frequent heli-skiing in the Bugaboo Mountains of British Columbia. He kayaked the Grand Canyon of the Colorado River, the Zambezi River below Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe, and the Sun Kosi River in the Everest region of Nepal. He climbed in the Mont Blanc region of France, summited Mt. Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, climbed the Matterhorn in Switzerland and Aconcagua in Argentina, and made a first-ascent of Kang Yaja (19,925 ft.) in the remote Dolpo region of the Nepali Himalaya. He was also a Divemaster in the Professional As- sociation of Dive Instructors, diving extensively in the Red Sea, in Papua New Guinea, and with the great white sharks in South Africa. He was elected as a fellow in the Explorer's Club in New York in March 2001. My first encounter with George was during my fellowship in cornea at Wills Eye Hospital with Peter Laibson, MD—the same fellowship George had completed more than a decade earlier. I recall reading his ar- ticles and then finding a chart with his name attached to it. Dr. Laibson would see his name, take me aside and tell me what an extraordinary person George Waring was and what a superb fellow he had been. George set the bar that I would always strive to obtain. When Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans, the first major meeting to help revive the city was the New Orleans Academy of Ophthalmology, chaired by Marguerite McDonald, MD. A group of ophthalmologists headed down to New Orleans with George as ringleader, determined to pro- vide a superb conference and make certain New Orleans nightlife was restored to its proper level of excess. Following the World Ophthal- mology Conference a few years ago, several American lecturers headed down to Rio de Janeiro for Carni- val. We were all sitting with the With the passing of Norman Jaffe we have lost one of the true heroes of contemporary ophthalmology. Norman was many things to many people—teacher, mentor, colleague, and friend. He will be long remembered for his insights, foresight, and wisdom. To those of us fortunate enough to call him "friend," he was the trusted confidant and mentor we all aspire to be. He truly made the world a better place. –Spencer P. Thornton, MD I first met Norman when he visited Miles Galin in New York because of his interest in intraocular implants. I had the pleasure of having him observe the implantation of my first intraocular implant in 1969—a "sputnik" design from Russia. He was a very charismatic man full of ideas. I quickly became a fan of Norman and began following his work in lens implantation in Miami. This was a time when most, if not all, academic centers in America pro- hibited lens implantation in their Tribute to Norman S. Jaffe, MD continued from page 33 George Waring III, MD, with his sons George Waring IV, MD, and Tim Waring, MD, with the kayak he built for them almost 40 years ago. Source: George O. Waring IV, MD teaching programs. Many residents in training in the Miami area would visit him to observe and study this new art. With the introduction of the Copeland lens (an American version of the Epstein lens), problems were immediately observed on a large scale. It was Norman who sounded the alarm bell and called for a mor- atorium on implants until results could be further studied. I believe that this was a seminal event in the history of lens implantation in America. This led to a cooperation between Norman and Ed Norton, the chair of ophthalmology at the Bascom Palmer Eye Institute in Miami. Ed was a powerful and well-respected figure in academic ophthalmology. I believe that this alliance was a key factor in the acceptance of lens implants in the teaching programs in this country. Norman was full of encour- agement and a strong supporter of mine. I shall never forget him for this. –Jack M. Dodick, MD

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