Rate My Professor Mark Wilkinson

Mark E. Wilkinson, OD, FAAO, serves as Clinical Professor of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences in the Carver College of Medicine at the University of Iowa. He holds key leadership positions including Director of the Vision Rehabilitation Service at the UI Carver Family Center for Macular Degeneration and Medical Director of UI Optical. Wilkinson earned his Doctor of Optometry from the Illinois College of Optometry in Chicago and a Bachelor of Science in Zoology from Iowa State University in Ames, Iowa. Certified by the National Board of Optometric Examiners, he has been part of the University of Iowa Health Care faculty since 1997, specializing in optometry within ophthalmology.

His clinical practice focuses on eye care, inherited eye diseases, low vision management, vision rehabilitation, optometry services, and vision training therapy. Wilkinson participates in open clinical trials, notably as a member of the gene replacement clinical trial team for the RPE65 form of Leber's Congenital Amaurosis. Research interests encompass driving performance under visual acuity, visual field, or cognitive impairments; phenotypic variations in inherited eye diseases; and interventions for children with visual impairments, including literacy challenges. Key publications include 'Low Vision Rehabilitation: An Update' (2017), 'Auditory Global Positioning System and Advanced Driver Assistance Systems: A Safer Alternative to Bioptic Telescopes for Drivers Who Are Visually Impaired?' (2018), 'Predominance of hyperopia in autosomal dominant Best vitelliform macular dystrophy' (2020), 'A Retrospective Longitudinal Study of 460 Patients with ABCA4-Associated Retinal Disease' (2024), and 'Functional Assessment of FECD in the National Advanced Driving Simulator: Initial Study of Nighttime Glare and Scheimpflug Imaging' (2025). With over 500 citations across 34 publications, his contributions advance vision rehabilitation and safe mobility for visually impaired individuals. He has served on the low vision subcommittee of the National Eye Health Education Program, enhancing public awareness and clinical practices in the field.