- RESOURCES & EDUCATION - PRACTICE MANAGEMENT Frederick H.
Verhoeff, MD, was one of the most influential American
ophthalmologists of the 20th century. He had a long career as a
professor of ophthalmic research at Harvard University and the
chief of ophthalmic research at the Massachusetts Eye and Ear
Infirmary in Boston. Verhoeff's contributions to ophthalmology
range from pathology and physiology to surgical techniques. Over
a 67-year period, Verhoeff published hundreds of journal
articles, the last, when he was 92, on his perceptions of his
own retinal venous occlusion. Verhoeff told a colleague that it
was the gift of a camera on his 12th birthday that led him into
ophthalmology. He became fascinated with lenses and that
interest in optics led to a determination to become an
ophthalmologist. Verhoeff was the first graduate of the Johns
Hopkins Medical School to enter the field of ophthalmology.
Following medical school, Verhoeff took the job of pathologist
at the Massachusetts Charitable Eye and Ear Infir