Pioneering Investigator Dr. Dimitra Skondra Appointed Vice Chair of Research for Ophthalmology

Dr. Skondra will bring personalized precision medicine and pioneering treatments to patients at the NYU Langone Eye Center.

NEW YORK, March 2, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- NYU Grossman School of Medicine's Department of Ophthalmology has appointed Dimitra Skondra, MD, PhD, a distinguished retinal specialist and translational researcher, as vice chair of research.

With a career spanning over two decades, Dr. Skondra brings expertise in innovative approaches to ocular disease, including groundbreaking work on the gut microbiome's role in retinal health, precision medicine applications, and emerging technologies in ophthalmology. Dr. Skondra joins the department from the University of Chicago, where she was a professor of ophthalmology and directed the J. Terry Ernest Ocular Imaging Center and the Microbiome Medicine Program.

"Dr. Skondra is an exceptional clinician–scientist whose vision for advancing the field aligns perfectly with our commitment to innovation and patient care," said Kathryn A. Colby, MD, PhD, the Elisabeth J. Cohen, MD, Professor of Ophthalmology and chair of the Department of Ophthalmology. "Her collaborative approach and dedication to both research and clinical excellence will strengthen our research mission across the institution."

Dr. Skondra earned her medical degree from the University of Crete Medical School in Greece, graduating summa cum laude, and completed ophthalmology residency at Cornell University and a vitreoretinal surgery fellowship at Harvard Medical School.

Her research has focused on understanding how systemic factors, particularly diet and the gut microbiome, influence ocular health, especially age-related macular degeneration (AMD). She has established causal relationships between gut dysbiosis and retinal disease, paving the way for novel preventive and therapeutic strategies. As vice chair of research, she intends to integrate international clinical expertise in diseases like AMD with innovative research to bring personalized precision medicine and pioneering treatments to NYU Langone Eye Center patients.

"I'm thrilled to join NYU Langone Health, an institution truly committed to breaking down silos between departments to drive cross-disciplinary innovation," said Dr. Skondra. "What excites me most is the opportunity to expand our research portfolio, deliver cutting-edge care and treatment to our patients, and advance our understanding of how the eye serves as a window to systemic health."

Research Vision and Goals

Building on her pioneering work related to the gut microbiome and retinal disease, Dr. Skondra will expand her research to include glaucoma, corneal diseases, and neuro-ophthalmologic conditions to better understand connections between the eye's immune and vascular biology. She will lead efforts to integrate multiomics data (genetic, microbiome, imaging, and clinical) with AI analytics to develop personalized treatment strategies, moving medicine from a reactive to a proactive model focused on disease prevention.

She will collaborate with colleagues across disciplines, including neurology, cardiology, and internal medicine, to establish advanced retinal imaging and vascular analysis as noninvasive biomarkers for detecting early signs of neurological and cardiovascular disease. She will bring multiple clinical trials to NYU Langone, including gene therapy trials for AMD and novel systemic treatments, positioning the institution at the forefront of retinal disease innovation and precision medicine.

Clinical Excellence and Surgical Innovation

Beyond research, Dr. Skondra will continue active clinical practice with a focus on complex retinal conditions. She is recognized as an expert in managing complicated retinal detachments and has pioneered noninvasive drop-based treatments for macular holes, achieving up to 70% success rates in preventing surgery for appropriate candidates.

Her work on repurposing metformin and other medications to prevent AMD progression has garnered international attention and represents a cost-effective, accessible approach to disease prevention. She is currently submitting a prospective clinical trial in collaboration with the University of California, San Francisco, to test this strategy in early-stage AMD patients.

She has published over 100 peer-reviewed articles in top-tier journals and is an invited speaker at major conferences across the globe, including serving as a keynote speaker on retinal innovation.

About NYU Langone Health

NYU Langone Health is a fully integrated health system that consistently achieves the best patient outcomes through a rigorous focus on quality, resulting in some of the lowest mortality rates in the nation. Vizient Inc. has ranked NYU Langone No. 1 out of 118 comprehensive academic medical centers across the nation for four years in a row, and U.S. News & World Report recently ranked four of its clinical specialties No. 1 in the nation. NYU Langone offers a comprehensive range of medical services with one high standard of care across seven inpatient locations, its Perlmutter Cancer Center, and more than 320 outpatient locations in the New York area and Florida. The system also includes two tuition-free medical schools and a vast research enterprise.

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SOURCE NYU Grossman School of Medicine and NYU Langone Health