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Prof Wong Tien Yin

Prof Wong Tien Yin

MBBS, MPH, M Med(Ophth), PhD (Johns Hopkins), FRCSE, FRANZCO, FRCOphth, FAHMS, FAMS

Senior Principal Clinician Scientist (Adjunct), Singapore Eye Research Institute

Research Interest:
  • Diabetic retinopathy
  • Age-related macular degeneration
  • Epidemiology
  • Ocular imaging
  • Artificial intelligence
  • Digital health

Research Appointments

  • Senior Principal Clinician Scientist (Adjunct), Singapore Eye Research Institute

Clinical Appointments

  • Senior Advisor, SingHealth Board of Advisors SingHealthSingHealth
  • Senior Consultant (Part-time) Medical Retina Department Singapore National Eye CentreSingapore National Eye Centre

Profile

Professor Wong Tien Yin is a Senior Advisor to SingHealth and a senior consultant ophthalmologist (part-time) sub-specialising in medical retina at the Singapore National Eye Centre.

Professor Wong was Medical Director of the Singapore National Eye Centre (SNEC) from 2014-2021. He has served as Deputy Group Chief Executive Officer (Research and Education), SingHealth and Vice-Dean, Duke-NUS Medical School, National University of Singapore.

Professor Wong has also served as Professor and Head of the Department of Ophthalmology, National University of Singapore, Chairman of the Department of Ophthalmology, Royal Victorian Eye and Ear Hospital, the University of Melbourne, Australia and was the past Executive Director of the Singapore Eye Research Institute (SERI) and previous chair to SERI’s Board, where he continues as a Senior Principal Clinician Scientist (Adjunct).

Professor Wong completed medical school at National University of Singapore (NUS) as a President's Scholar, clinical ophthalmology training at SNEC, and retinal fellowships at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, USA, and the University of Sydney, Australia. He obtained his MPH and PhD from the Johns Hopkins University, USA.

Professor Wong leads a broad-based research focused on the epidemiology of retinal diseases, such as diabetic and hypertensive retinopathy and age-related macular degeneration, and on ocular imaging technology including the development and application of artificial intelligence (AI) for diabetic retinopathy screening and prediction of cardiovascular diseases.

Professor Wong has published more than 1,500 peer-reviewed papers, including papers in the New England Journal of Medicine and the Lancet, has given more than 500 invited named, plenary and symposium lectures, and received more than US$100million in grant funding from the National Medical Research Council in Singapore, the National Institutes of Health (NIH), USA, and the National Health and Medical Research Council, Australia. He is a Highly Cited Researcher (top 1% of all researchers)

Professor Wong is currently serving or has previously served on multiple Editorial Boards: The American Journal of Ophthalmology, British Journal of Ophthalmology, JAMA-Ophthalmology, Investigative Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, Diabetes Care, Journal of Hypertension, Ophthalmologica and Lancet Digital Health. He is a Board Member of the National Medical Research Council, Singapore and has served in the Council of various professional societies, including the International Council of Ophthalmology, the Macula Society, the Asia-Pacific Academy of Ophthalmology and the Asia-Pacific Vitreo-Retina Society.

For his service and research, Prof Wong has been recognised nationally and internationally with numerous awards. He was recognised as the top researcher in any field from two leading Universities: the Outstanding Researcher Award from the National University of Singapore (winning it twice in 2004 and 2009) and the Woodward Medal from the University of Melbourne. He has received the Alcon Research Institute Award, USA, the Novartis Prize in Diabetes (Global Young Investigator), the Commonwealth Health Minister's Award for Excellence in Health and Medical Research, the Australian Society of Medical Research AMGEN Medical Research of the Year Award for "outstanding contribution to translational research", and the Arnall Patz Medal from the Macula Society, USA. Professor Wong is a two-time recipient of the Singapore Translational Researcher Award (2008 and 2014). He was conferred the Arthur Lim Professorship in Ophthalmology in 2019. He received the National Clinician Scientist Award, the President's Science Award in 2010 and the President's Technology Award in 2014. He is an elected member of the U.S. National Academy of Medicine.

Professional Appointments and Committee Memberships

  • Senior Advisor, SingHealth Board of Advisors (2022 - present)
  • Founding member, Future Vision Forum, USA (2021 - present)
  • Advisory Board Member, Saudi NIH (2021 - present)
  • Scientific Advisory Board Member, ALDROPIKA Therapeutics (2021 - present)
  • Director, Ophthalmology Foundation Board (2021 - present)
  • Vice Chairman, Deanery Academic Board, Academy of Medicine, Singapore (2020 - present)
  • Assistant Master (Academic Affairs), Academy of Medicine, Singapore (2020 - present)
  • Chairman, Singapore Biodesign Steering Committee (2019 - present)
  • President, Asia-Pacific Ocular Imaging Society (2018 - present)
  • Deputy Group CEO, Research & Education, Singapore Health Services, Singapore (2018–2021)
  • Vice President, Asia Pacific Vitreo-retinal Society (2017–2021)
  • Council Member, Asia Pacific Tele-Ophthalmology Society (2016–2021)
  • Council Member, College of Ophthalmologists, Singapore (2016–2021)
  • Council Member, Academy of Medicine Singapore (2015 - present)
  • Vice-Dean, Duke-NUS Medical School, National University of Singapore, Singapore (2014–2021)
  • Chair & Medical Director, Singapore National Eye Centre (2014–2021)
  • Chairman, Board of Directors, Singapore Eye Research Institute (2014–2021)
  • Council Member, Asia Pacific Academy of Ophthalmology (2010 - present)
  • Board Member, National Medical Research Council, Singapore (2009 - present)

Education

  • FRCOphth (2019)    
  • FAMS (2010)
  • FRANZCO (2004)
  • PhD (Johns Hopkins) (2002)
  • M Med(Ophth) (1999)
  • FRCS(Ed) (1999) 
  • MPH (Johns Hopkins) (1997) 
  • MBBS (1992) 

Awards

  • Elected Fellow (Corresponding), Australian Academy of Health and Medical Sciences, Australia (2021)
  • IAPB Vision Excellence Award, International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness (2020)
  • US National Academy of Medicine (2020)
  • Jose Rizal Medal Medal, Asia-Pacific Academy of Ophthalmology (APAO) (2019)
  • Sir Runme Shaw Memorial Lecture, Academy of Medicine Singapore (2017)
  • Senior Achievement Award, American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) (2016)
  • Tano Lecture, Asia Pacific Vitreo-Retina Society (2015)
  • President's Science and Technology Award, Singapore (2014)
  • Arnall Patz Medal, Macula Society, USA (2014)
  • Singapore Translational Research (STaR) Award, National Medical Research Council (2014)
  • Eisenhower Fellowship, USA (2013)
  • Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health Knowledge of the World Award, USA (2011)
  • Fred Hollows Lecture, Australian Ophthalmic and Visual Sciences Meeting, Australia (2010)
  • President’s Science Award, Singapore (2010)
  • Outstanding Researcher of the Year, National University of Singapore, Singapore (2009)
  • The Australian Society for Medical Research AMGEN Medical Researcher Award, Australia (2007)
  • The Alcon Research Institute Award, USA (2006)
  • The Commonwealth Minister of Health Award for Excellence in Medical Research, Australia (2006)
  • The Woodward Medal for Science and Technology, University of Melbourne, Australia (2005)

Research Studies

  • Epidemiology of eye diseases
  • Retinal Vascular Imaging
  • Diabetic retinopathy screening and diagnosis
  • Artificial intelligence and ocular imaging
  • Clinical trials on retinal diseases

Publications

  1. Rim TH, Lee CJ, …, Wong TY. Deep-learning-based cardiovascular risk stratification using coronary artery calcium scores predicted from retinal photographs. Lancet Digit Health. 2021 May;3(5):e306-e316.

  2. Cheung CY, Xu D, Cheng CY, …, Wong TY. A deep-learning system for the assessment of cardiovascular disease risk via the measurement of retinal-vessel calibre. Nat Biomed Eng. 2021 Jun;5(6):498-508.

  3. Sabanayagam C, Xu D, …, Wong TY. A deep learning algorithm to detect chronic kidney disease from retinal photographs in community-based populations. Lancet Digit Health. 2020 Jun;2(6):e295-e302.

  4. Gunasekeran DV, Tham YC, ..., Wong TY. Digital health during COVID-19: lessons from operationalising new models of care in ophthalmology. Lancet Digit Health. 2021 Feb;3(2):e124-e134.

  5. Milea D, Najjar RP, Zhubo J, …, Wong TY, Biousse V; BONSAI Group. Artificial intelligence to detect papilledema from ocular fundus photographs. N Eng J Med 2020;382:1687-1695.

  6. Ting DSW, Carin L, Dzau V, Wong TY. Digital technology and COVID-19. Nat Med 2020;26(4):459-461.

  7. Ting DSW, Cheung CY, …, Wong TY. Development and validation of a deep learning system for diabetic retinopathy and related eye diseases using retinal images from multi-ethnic populations with diabetes. JAMA. 2017;318(22):2211-2223.

  8. Wong TY, Bressler NM. Artificial intelligence with deep learning technology looks into diabetic retinopathy screening. JAMA. 2016;316(22):2366-2367.

  9. Wong TY, Cheung CM, Larsen M, Sharma S, Simó R. Diabetic retinopathy. Nat Rev Dis Primers 2016;2:16012.

  10. 10. Lim L, Mitchell P, Seddon J, Holz F, Wong TY. Age-related macular degeneration. Lancet 2012. 379(9827): p. 1728-1738.

  11. Wong TY, Scott IU. Retinal vein occlusion. N Eng J Med 2010; 363(22): 2135-44.

  12. Wong TY, Liew G, Tapp R, et al. Relation of fasting glucose and retinopathy for diagnosis of diabetes: three population-based cross-sectional studies. Lancet 2008; 371: 736-743.

  13. Mohamed Q, Gillies, MC, Wong TY. Management of diabetic retinopathy: a systematic review. JAMA 2007;298:902-916.

  14. Wong TY, Rosamond WR, Chang P, et al. Retinopathy and risk of congestive heart failure. JAMA 2005: 293:63-69.

  15. Wong TY, Mitchell P. Hypertensive retinopathy. N Engl J Med 2004;351:2310-7.

  16. Wong TY, Klein R, Sharrett AR, et al. Retinal arteriolar narrowing and risk of diabetes in middle-aged persons. JAMA 2002; 287: 2528-33.

  17. Wong TY, Klein R, Couper DJ, et al. Retinal microvascular abnormalities and incident clinical strokes. The atherosclerosis risk in the communities study. Lancet 2001: 358: 1134-40.