Welcome to Clarity Eye Group

Meet the Doctors at Our Practice
Serving Orange County, Huntington Beach, Costa Mesa, Seal Beach, Long Beach

At Clarity Eye Group, our knowledgeable eye surgeons offer residents of Huntington Beach and the surrounding communities more than a century’s worth of collective professional experience. Doctors Kaplan, Karageozian, Fahd, Blau, and Balding are highly esteemed, reputable eye surgeons who have performed thousands of surgical procedures.

Doctors Kaplan, Karageozian, and Fahd are highly regarded OC cataract specialists. They use the most advanced techniques available, such as no-stitch surgery, astigmatism correction during cataract surgery, and the most current multifocal and accommodating intraocular lens implants to reduce dependence on glasses. They have extensive experience implanting Crystalens, ReZoom and ReStor IOLs in Orange County.

Additionally, Dr. Fahd has personally performed more than 40,000 LASIK refractive procedures using the latest in vision correction technology. Because of their superior surgical talent and abilities, Clarity Eye Group’s surgeons have earned much trust and respect from colleagues and patients around the world. People seeking advanced cataract surgery, LASIK, pterygium removal, and other procedures fly in from other countries to take advantage of their meticulous and compassionate approach to eye care.

Michael R. Kaplan, M.D.

"Dr. Michael Kaplan was born in Los Angeles and raised in Burbank in the San Fernando Valley. He graduated from John Burroughs High School in Burbank as class valedictorian, where he also served as school auditor.

He went on to attend Pomona College on scholarship, and played as catcher for their varsity baseball team. At Pomona College, Dr. Kaplan was elected to Phi Beta Kappa, an international honors society. He then attended medical school at the University of California, Los Angeles on a full scholarship, and graduated in 1967. After spending two summers working at Olive View Hospital in the San Fernando Valley, he decided to pursue ophthalmology as a career path. The attending ophthalmologist at the hospital was quite inspiring, and Dr. Kaplan has never regretted his choice of specialty. At that time, a residency in ophthalmology was the hardest to obtain in all of the medical/surgical fields. He interned at Cedars Sinai Hospital in Los Angeles, and received residency training at the Washington National Eye Center in Washington, D.C. He chose to attend WNEC over the opportunity to stay at UCLA (Jules Stein Eye Institute) or train at Baylor University, George Washington University, or Georgetown University because of the extensive surgical experience they offered.

After completing his residency, he became a Lieutenant Commander in the U.S. Naval Reserve and served two years at the Beaufort Naval Hospital in South Carolina. There, he provided support for the Marine Corps Training Center at nearby Parris Island. During his second year at the hospital, he became chief of the Eye, Ear, Nose, and Throat Department.

Dr. Kaplan eagerly moved "back home" to California in 1973 and joined Doctors Blau and Balding at our Huntington Beach practice.

Dr. Kaplan became Chief of Ophthalmology at the Long Beach Veteran’s Hospital in 1974. At the time, it was one of four teaching hospitals in the UCLA/Jules Stein program. For the past 25 years it has been part of the UCI program. For the past 33 years, he has assisted residents in their training, often helping them complete their very first cataract surgery. He continues to volunteer at the Long Beach Veterans Hospital each week and holds the position of Assistant Clinical Professor at UCI. In addition, Dr Kaplan is board certified, belongs to the Orange County Medical Association, California Medical Association, American Academy of Ophthalmology, and the Orange County Eye Society.

Dr. Kaplan became interested in volunteer surgery in third world countries and made his first trip to Honduras in 1976. Since then, he has volunteered for nearly 20 trips, including to Mexico, Costa Rica, Vietnam, Philippines, Borneo, Mongolia, Nepal, Tibet, and most recently Zambia.

Dr. Kaplan enjoys skiing, mountain climbing (Mt. Whitney, Long’s Peak, The Himalayas) and jogging. He was recently married and enjoys traveling and life at the beach with his new wife.

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Vicken Karageozian, M.D.

Dr. Vicken Karageozian was born in Pasadena, California and raised in Laguna Hills. He graduated among the top of his class from the University of California, San Diego in 1991 with degrees in biochemistry, cellular biology, and economics. In 1995, Dr. Karageozian received his medical degree from Tufts University School of Medicine in Boston, where he also ranked in the top of his class. After completing an internship at UCLA, he began his ophthalmology residency at the University of California, Irvine in 2000. He was elected to the distinguished position of chief of residents during the same year.

Dr. Karageozian joined the practice of Drs. Kaplan and Blau as a comprehensive ophthalmologist specializing in advanced surgical techniques. He was instrumental in advancing the growth and progressive nature at Clarity Eye Group into one of the premier ophthalmic practices in Southern California. He has been key in bringing advances in cataract and lens replacement surgery to the Clarity Eye Group. Dr. Karageozian has introduced many innovative surgical procedures to his practice, such as multifocal and accommodating lens implants and cataract surgery coupled with astigmatism correction. He is a diplomate of the American Board of Ophthalmology and Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology, as well as a member of the California Medical Association and the Orange County Ophthalmologic Society. He also teaches cataract surgery to residents at the UCI School of Medicine Department of Ophthalmology as an Assistant Clinical Professor of Ophthalmology.

Dr. Karageozian's position is unique in that he is an innovator both on the clinical and surgical fronts as well as extensively in the research arena. Dr. Karageozian has co-founded two biotech companies responsible for developing innovative treatments for several medical eye conditions that have few treatment options, including early diabetic retinopathy, glaucoma related vision loss, retinitis pigmentosa, and adjuncts to vitrectomy surgery. His work on retinal diseases of the eye, including vitreous hemorrhage and diabetic retinopathy, has been published in many peer review journals. He has presented his work at the American Academy of Ophthalmology, the National Institutes of Health, the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology, and before the United States Food and Drug Administration.

He presently holds nearly two-dozen U.S. and international patents for his work. In 1996, Dr. Karageozian co-developed Vitrase® with Ista Pharmaceuticals™, a new category of treatment for patients suffering from vitreous hemorrhages.

Currently, Dr. Karageozian divides his time between surgery, his clinical practice, and the drug development efforts he has spearheaded. In 2001, Dr. Karageozian co-founded the pharmaceutical research company, Vitreoretinal Technologies, Inc. to further develop his work in the area of retinal diseases. Vitreosolve™, its first product to slow the progression of diabetic eye disease, the first of its kind, is just entering the last stages before U.S. market approval. Dr. Karageozian also led the development of a revolutionary treatment for retinitis pigmentosa, a disease affecting his mother that will start U.S. trials in late 2008. Dr. Karageozian’s unique experience comes from his ability to intertwine the lessons learned on the cutting edge of clinical practice with those gleaned in the research arena.

Personally, Dr. Karageozian is deeply involved with his immediate and extended family. He is a computer buff and enjoys traveling and wine collecting. He and his wife Silva have three children.

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Antoine K. Fahd, M.D., Ph.D., F.A.A.O., F.A.C.S.

Dr. Antoine Fahd has been a leader in refractive surgery for the past ten years. He was among the first surgeons in Southern California to perform wavefront LASIK and the only refractive surgeon in California to hold an undergraduate degree in electrical engineering and a doctorate in laser physics, making his journey into the field of medicine somewhat unique. His experience in both medicine and engineering allows him to provide patients with the ultimate in care.

Dr. Fahd received his electrical engineering degree from Bradley University in Illinois and his doctorate in laser physics from the prestigious Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta. He worked as an investigator with NASA and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. He then switched his focus to medicine and attended the Medical College of Georgia, where he graduated among the top 5 percent of his class. Dr. Fahd went on to complete residency training in ophthalmology at U.C. Irvine. During his residency, he worked with world-renowned eye surgeons and mastered the "no patch, no stitch" cataracts extraction procedure. Dr fahd uses the latest technology in cataract surgery, including multifocal, and accommodative IOL. This includes Restor, Rezoom, and Crystalens. In addition, Dr. Fahd continued to enhance his surgical skills by completing a refractive surgery fellowship after his residency was over.

Dr. Fahd has performed thousands of LASIK procedures and uses the latest technology to provide his patients with outstanding results and care. His high achievements in refractive surgery have given Dr. Fahd his own listing in Who's Who in Medicine. Dr. Fahd has conducted several research projects and has lectured at many medical conferences. He is a clinical faculty member at a major teaching hospital. He is also on staff at HOAG Hospital. He is an active member of the American Medical Association, the American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery, the American Academy of Ophthalmology, the American College of Surgeons, and the California Ophthalmologic Society.

Dr. Fahd spends his free time with his wife and two sons. He enjoys traveling, kayaking, scuba diving, reading, cooking, and photography.

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Robert I. Blau, M.D.

Dr. Robert Blau was born in Toronto, Canada and moved to Gary, Indiana in 1940. After graduating from Horace Mann High School in 1951, he attended Indiana University and worked in the steel mills in Gary during the summer to pay for his education.

Dr. Blau went on to attend the Indiana University Medical School, which he graduated from in 1958. He interned at Indianapolis General Hospital and completed residency training for the field of ophthalmology at Baylor Medical School in Houston, Texas.

In 1961, Dr. Blau became the first ophthalmologist to open a private ophthalmology practice in Huntington Beach. He is happy to be a member of the Clarity Eye Group.

Dr. Blau's personal interests include horse racing, art, swimming, reading, and spending time with his family. His is happily married and has three children and six grandchildren.

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Thomas L. Balding, M.D.

Dr. Thomas Balding was born in Malta, Ohio and raised in Buckeye Lake and Newark. After graduating from Newark High School, he attended Ohio University for his undergraduate studies. He maintained several jobs throughout his education to help pay for his tuition, but the work he found most interesting was his job at the morgue.

After his undergraduate training, he attended Ohio State University, which he graduated from in 1960. He completed his internship and residency training at the U.S. Naval Hospital in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and became a flight surgeon with the U.S. Navy shortly after. After completing his residency training, Dr. Balding and his wife moved to California.

Dr. Balding worked at the Veterans Hospital in Long Beach for six years and has held several chief positions. He also spent time as a clinical assistant professor of ophthalmology at U.C.L.A. He joined Dr. Blau in private practice in 1968.

Dr. Balding is married and has four children and seven grandchildren. He enjoys working part-time and spending time with his family. He also enjoys skiing and playing golf.

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Patricia Uyekawa, O.D.

Dr. Patricia Uyekawa, a native and third-generation Californian, was born and raised in Los Angeles. She grew up playing basketball and softball and loved to swim and read. She graduated with honors from Garfield High School in Los Angeles.

In 1972, Dr. Uyekawa was among the first group of women to attend Yale University. She also attended U.C. Berkeley as a State Scholar and graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Physiological Optics. She received her Doctor of Optometry degree from U.C. Berkeley, where she graduated at the top of her class in 1979. At graduation, she received the American Optometric Foundation Irving M. Borish Award for excellence in contact lens research, and her doctoral thesis was read before the American Academy of Physiological Optics.

Dr. Uyekawa has been practicing optometry in Orange County since 1987.  She joined Clarity Eye Group in 2005.  She enjoys working with her patients and takes pride in delivering personalized care and attention in contact lenses, geriatrics, and primary eye care.

Her greatest achievement and joy has been raising her daughter, Melissa. She also has many other interests, including theater, cooking, traveling, and scrapbooking her family memories.

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Contact Our Experienced Eye Professionals

To learn more about the Clarity Eye Group or to schedule an appointment with one of our skilled doctors, contact Clarity Eye Group today.

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