Dry Eye Patient Symposium

Kaleb Abbott is an assistant professor at the University of Colorado School of Medicine, specializing in ocular surface diseases at the Dry Eye Clinic and Center for Ocular Inflammation where he conducts reseach and participates in clinical trials. He has published numberous manuscripts and articles pertaining to dry eye and ocular surface disease, but his primary passion is pain perception and nerve dysfunction. He serves as vice-president of the Ocular Wellness and Nutrition Society, chairs the Nutrition, Disease Prevention, and Wellness SIG for AAO, and is on the editorial advisory board for Modern Optometry and Optometry360. In 2024, he was recognized as a “One-to-Watch” by Modern Optometry.

Dr. Chiu is an Associate Professor of Clinical Ophthalmology at the USC Roski Eye Institute, Department of Ophthalmology at the University of Southern California Keck School of Medicine. She received her Doctor of Optometry at the University of California, Berkeley, School of Optometry and completed a residency in Cornea and Contact Lenses at the Southern California College of Optometry, where she still serves as an adjunct faculty member. 

Her clinical interests include contact lens fittings and treatment for patients with ocular surface disease and irregular corneas. Her research interests include microbial contamination in contact lens-related solutions and effects of scleral lens wear on the ocular surface and optic nerve. She is a fellow of the American Academy of Optometry and the Scleral Lens Education Society, a member of the California Optometric Association, and serves on the Board of Directors at the Dry Eye Foundation. She was named one of America’s Best Eye Doctors by Newsweek and GP Practitioner of the Year by the Gas Permeable Lens Institute.

Dr. Stapleton is a clinical scientist with expertise in basic and translational research in the fields of dry eye, corneal infection and contact lens related disease. Her research aims to improve understanding of ocular surface diseases and to improve treatment outcomes for patients. Relevant to this presentation, she was fortunate to have had the opportunity to participate as chair and steering committee member in 5 of the last TFOS workshops including DEWS II, Lifestyle and DEWS III.

She has published more than 350 publications and has received several international awards for her research, most recently in 2024 the Ruben Medial by the International Society for Contact Lens Research. She has been recognised as the top Australian researcher in the field of research of ophthalmology and optometry by publications and citations.  In 2023 she was nominated in the to the Order of Australia and is a Diplomate in the Cornea, Contact Lens and Refractive Technologies Section of the American Academy of Optometry.

Rebecca Petris co-founded Dry Eye Foundation in 2018 and founded online patient community Dry Eye Zone in 2005. She serves as President of DEF’s Board of Directors and volunteers extensively on DEF’s education and advocacy programs. Rebecca began engaging in dry eye patient advocacy work after experiencing dry eye, eye pain and vision complications from LASIK in 2001.

Aidan Moore is Executive Director of the Dry Eye Foundation. He has been working with the dry eye community since 2016 and helped establish DEF as a non-profit in 2018. He is a sympathetic listener, supporter, and advocate for dry eye patients, and he believes in using DEF’s platform to reshape the future for dry eye patients. He has been integral to DEF’s community support programs and educational initiatives like the Dry Eye Helpline, Dry Eye Zoom Groups, Eye Drop Safety, MyDryEyeData and more. His motto is “how can we help?”