Muhammad Elahi, a student jointly enrolled in the MD program at the Quillen College of Medicine and in the Master of Public Health program at the ETSU College of Public Health, was selected to participate in the 19th Annual Break the Cycle of Children’s Environmental Health Disparities Program for 2023-2024. As a Break the Cycle participant, Muhammad participates in monthly coaching calls and will complete a student-driven research project that address health equity for all children. He will present his project at the national Break the Cycle conference in April and the results are published in an international journal and a book chapter on public health topics. Muhammad’s research will focus on the intersection of child vision health and the social determinants of health. Dr. David Wood, Dr. Jodi Southerland, and Dr. Shimin Zheng are his faculty mentors on the project.
More recently, Elahi co-authored an article entitled "Systemic Medications and Glaucoma," that was published in EyeWiki. EyeWiki is a collaboration between the American Academy of Ophthalmology and more than a dozen societies. Articles are written by ophthalmologists or ophthalmologists in training. Dr. Fabliha Mukit of the University of Tennessee Health Science Center is lead author of the article. Dr. Jodi Southerland, Assistant Professor in the East Tennessee State University College of Public Health Department of Community and Behavioral Health was also a co-author on the article. Additional co-authors included faculty from the University of Tennessee Health Science Center and the Hamilton Eye Institute. Given the frequent co-occurrence of glaucoma with other systemic diseases, it is critical to understand how other medications can positively or negatively affect glaucoma management. This will help to better serve patients and manage their IOP more efficaciously. This article will also help in educating patients about eye disease and proactively screening for glaucoma.