He completed the Vitreoretinal Fellowship at the Geneva University Ophthalmology Department and Scheie Eye Institute, University of Pennsylvania, and is Associated Professor of the Department of Ophthalmology of Geneva University and Director of the Vitreoretinal Unit.
He was Visiting Professor at the Scheie Eye Institute, University of Pennsylvania, Visiting Scientist at the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary and Harvard University and Invited Professor at the University of Paris Creteil and he has lectured extensively in many foreign countries.
He has been author and co-author in many papers and abstracts in pre-reviewed journals, and in papers in the forms of book chapters, reviews, reports, solicited editorials.
He is member of many professional national and international societies, Chair of the retinal section of EVER and served as member of the French Ophthalmological Society Executive Committee from May 1996 to May 2003.
He is member of the Editorial Board of Graefe’s Archive of Clinical and Experimental Ophthalmology, Journal Français d’Ophtalmologie, European Journal of Ophthalmology and reviewer of numerous international journals in Ophthalmology.
His main clinical and surgical activity deals with vitreoretinal pathologies, and he continues to train clinical and research Vitreoretinal national and international fellows, and is the director of many MD and PhD thesis.
He participated at the development of the Photodynamic Therapy for Neovascular Macular Degeneration in multiple Multicentric Clinical trials since 1995, as well as the antiangiogenic L-interferon alpha-2a and anti-VEGF trials.
Pr. Pournaras is actively investigating the physiology and physiopathology of retinal and papillary circulation. He has received funding for his work from the Swiss Science Foundation, Swiss Foundation to prevent blindness, and industial sponsors.
For the clinical and basic research, he received many national and international awards, among them the major Swiss prize of “Ophthalmology Research Prize Alfred Vogt”, the “International Chibret Award.