Candidate Bio
Dr. Cortina is Associate Professor of Ophthalmology and attending physician in the Cornea Service at the Illinois Eye and Ear Infirmary, Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences. She serves as Director of the Keratoprosthesis Artificial Cornea Program, Director of the Infirmary’s Comprehensive Ophthalmology Faculty Practice and General Eye Clinic. She is also co-director of the cornea fellowship program.
Dr. Cortina joined the Illinois Eye and Ear Infirmary as a board-certified cornea specialist in 2010. She received her medical degree with honors from the University of Buenos Aires School of Medicine, Argentina. She completed her residency at Louisiana State University (LSU) School of Medicine; a research fellowship at Louisiana State University’s Neuroscience Center; and a clinical fellowship in cornea, external disease and refractive surgery at UIC’s Illinois Eye and Ear Infirmary.
Dr. Cortina has authored over 80 peer-reviewed publications and book chapters. She is an active member of the American Academy of Ophthalmology serving as a council member since 2021, the Pan-American Association of Ophthalmology, the Eye Bank Association of America, the Cornea Society, Women in Ophthalmology and the Illinois Society of Eye and Physician Surgeons. She volunteers for the American Board of Ophthalmology and serves as medical director for Eversight Eye Bank. Dr. Cortina is an associate editor for Eye & Contact Lens journal and the journal Frontiers in Ophthalmology. She is part of the editorial board for the Journal of Ocular Surface and Cornea Open.
Personal Statement
I strongly believe in the mission of eye banking and in the critical role that the EBAA plays in the restoration of sight worldwide through advancing knowledge, corneal donation and innovation. Shortly after finishing my cornea fellowship, I participated in the EBAA physician leadership program. This was a pivotal point in my commitment to eye banking as it helped me understand how important our support and service as physicians was to our eye banking organizations in order to achieve the ultimate goal of successfully restoring sight through corneal transplantation. I have since actively participated in various roles within my local eye bank, Eversight, and within the EBAA that have furthered my knowledge in eye banking and given me an understanding of the current challenges.
Our field has seen amazing innovation and change within this past decade and eye banks have had to adapt at a fast pace. Corneal transplantation as we know it today may be very different in the not-so-distant future. As a cornea surgeon and eye bank medical director I can clearly see the challenges ahead. My personal background also gives me a different perspective of the impact that the EBAA can have around the world in countries with much less developed eye banking systems. I am confident that the EBAA will lead the way in supporting the evolution of our eye bank organizations. As a board member I would work diligently to ensure that our organization continues to strategically move forward towards its mission of restoring sight worldwide.
EBAA Service
- Accreditation Board: Member (2015-Present)
- Scientific Programs Committee: Member (2016-2022); Vice-Chair (2022-Present)
- Medical Advisory Board: Member (2021-Present)
- Long Term Preservation MAB Subcommittee: Member (2022-Present)
- Participated in EBAA Physician Leadership Program