James L. Kinyoun, M.D.

Dr. Kinyoun is a professor of ophthalmology at the University of Washington.  He specializes in medical and surgical diseases of the retina and vitreous. His clinical research interests include diabetic retinopathy and retina complications of prior radiotherapy. He values time to communicate as thoroughly as possible the cause of each patient's eye problem and the choices for management. Dr. Kinyoun believes patient understanding is key to a successful, ongoing, long-term patient-physician relationship.

Patient Care Philosophy
Each patient is unique and deserves individual attention regarding final diagnosis and selection of treatment. What worked very well for the last patient with the same eye problem may not be the best treatment choice for every patient. Educating each patient about the diagnosis and treatment options available allows the patient to become a part of the decision-making process.

Scope Of Care
Medical and surgical care of retina and vitreous diseases including retinal detachment, diabetic retinopathy, vitreous hemorrhage, age-related macular degeneration, and other macular abnormalities with intravitreal injections, vitrectomy, scleral buckle, laser photocoagulation, and lensectomy. Preoperative evaluations include interpretation of fluorescein angiography, B-scan ultrasonography and optical coherence tomography.

Personal Interests
He enjoys sporting activities (e.g., basketball and football), as well as exercising outdoors (e.g., hiking, running, and snowshoeing) with his family. He relishes the endless, ever-changing, visually stimulating beauty of the Pacific Northwest whether he's watching the sun set behind the Olympic Mountains or the rain move across Puget Sound.

Clinical Interests
Retinal detachment, proliferative diabetic retinopathy, diabetic macular edema, vitreous hemorrhage, numerous other macular abnormalities, including age-related macular degeneration and epimacular membranes, eye-trauma and radiation retinopathy.

Research Interests
Increasing understanding of diabetic retinopathy and its treatments, and elimination of vision loss due to complications of diabetes mellitus is a life-long goal. He has participated in national collaborative studies over the past 30 years which have shown that good blood sugar control as well as laser photocoagulation are excellent treatments which decrease vision loss due to diabetic retinopathy. A complication of prior radiation treatment around the eyes, radiation retinopathy, has similar eye findings as those found in diabetic retinopathy. Dr. Kinyoun has found that the beneficial effects of laser photocoagulation for diabetic retinopathy may also be beneficial for radiation retinopathy.

Teaching Interests
Teaching medical students, ophthalmology residents and retina-vitreous fellows how to examine the retina and form differential diagnoses for patients' eye problems have been the highlights of Dr. Kinyoun' 30-year career at UW Medicine. All three of these groups of physicians-in-training are highly motivated to see the normal and abnormal findings inside each eye which enables them to make correct diagnoses and form rational treatment plans. In addition, they learn to appreciate that the beauty of the Pacific Northwest is not only equaled but exceeded by the beauty of human anatomy known as the retina.

Languages
English

Expertise
Eye Care (Ophthalmology)