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Richard N. Silverstein, M.D., F.A.C.S.Dr. Silverstein graduated from New York University with a BS degree in biology in 1972 following this he attended New York University School of Medicine for the first two of his four year medical school education. In 1974 he made the decision to transfer from New York University School of Medicine to the Medical School at the State University of New York at Buffalo. He graduated from Buffalo in 1976 with a M.D. degree. It was during his fourth year of electives in medical school that he made a decision to specialize in the field of ophthalmology. His decision was greatly influenced by his tutelage under Dr. Robert Ellsworth who was a Professor of Ophthalmology at the Edward S. Harkness Eye Institute of Columbia University. Dr. Ellsworth had a specific interest in the treatment of tumors of the eyes and orbits. Following his medical school graduation he entered a one-year internship at The Brookdale Hospital Medical Center. During his internship Dr. Silverstein founded and was appointed as the Chief Surgeon of the New York City Housing Authority Police Department Surgeon Program. I continued in this capacity until entering private practice in 1981 when time he stepped down from his position as Chief Surgeon and remained attached to this department as a Surgeon. Following the completion of his internship in internal medicine he entered the Ophthalmology program at the Jules Stein Eye Institute, UCLA. Following the three-year residency at UCLA Dr. Silverstein returned to the East Coast and joined a group practice in upstate New York. Desiring to function as a sole practitioner he opened a private practice in Ophthalmology, Neuro-Ophthalmology and Ophthalmic Microsurgery in Staten Island New York in 1981. His activities in this practice included the diagnosis and treatment of ocular diseases such as glaucoma, cataracts, retinal detachment, ocular tumors, headaches, diseases and tumors of the orbit and diseases and tumors of the nervous system that impacted the visual system. It was during this time that Dr. Silverstein performed surgical procedures for cataracts, glaucoma, diabetes, orbital and ocular tumors, retinal detachment, corneal transplantation, ocular plastics and trauma of the eye and ocular adnexa and corneal transplantation surgery. In 1984 Dr. Silverstein was appointed as an Honorary Surgeon for the New York City Police Department by Police Commissioner Benjamin Ward. He continued in his private practice of ophthalmology and microsurgery until April 1994 when he suffered a fall while horseback riding which resulted in a fracture of his left hand which resulted in permanent nerve damage and his inability to perform microsurgery. Needless to say this event was life-changing. Dr. Silverstein developed reflex sympathetic dystrophy which manifests itself as severe nerve pain and for the first time in his life he became the patient and not the doctor. “Although I had treated nerve pain for the entirety of my professional career it was quite a different story to experience it on a personal level. I believe that it was this event coupled with my long-term dedication to neuro-ophthalmology that pointed me more strongly than ever before to become involved in the diagnosis and treatment nerve pain experienced by headache sufferer”s. Dr. Silverstein continued to manage his practice until 1997 at which time he transferred ownership to another ophthalmologist. Dr. Silverstein and his family relocated to Chappaqua New York located in northern Westchester County in May 1998. At the time of his relocation he was asked to join the faculty of the Columbia-Presbyterian Medical Center and The Edward S. Harkness Eye Institute by its chairman Dr. Stanley Chang. In his capacity at Columbia Dr. Silverstein is involved in the teaching of residents and medical students as well as the care of patients seeking attention at the Eye Institute. Dr. Silverstein was appointed to the position of Assistant Clinical Professor of Ophthalmology at both Columbia-Presbyterian Medical Center and the Columbia College of Physicians and Surgeons. In 2001 Dr. Silverstein elected to reestablish a private practice solely directed to the care and treatment of patients suffering with headaches. This was an area of interest for him since he established his first private practice in 1981 and strengthened by his personal experiences with similar afflictions. Dr. Silverstein's AffiliationsPresent Affiliations
Past Affiliations
Curriculum Vitae
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