Dr. Arpenik Avakian is a highly qualified ophthalmologist with 25 years of experience. She is certified by the American Board of Ophthalmology and has formal advanced subspecialty training in diseases of the retina and vitreous. Dr. Avakian earned her clinical PhD and received her medical education and specialization in ophthalmology at the Medical Academy in Moscow, Russia. In 1989 she became an Assistant Professor at Columbia University in New York and was at the forefront of research in new therapies for macular degeneration and retinal diseases. As an accomplished clinician, in 1996 she became a Chief Resident in Ophthalmology at Southern Illinois University and subsequently completed her two-year Fellowship in Surgical and Medical Treatment of Vitreoretinal Diseases at the University of Washington.