Get in Touch with Eye Doctors in Mt. Pleasant, SC

Dr. Francisco A. Folgar, MD is a board-certified ophthalmologist and ophthalmic surgeon who specializes in the treatment of medical and surgical diseases of the retina. He completed his undergraduate education at Duke University in North Carolina before pursuing his medical degree and ophthalmology residency at New York University and the Manhattan Eye Ear & Throat Hospital.

He also completed a vitreoretinal surgery fellowship at the Duke University Eye Center. In addition, he also completed a postdoctoral research fellowship with the world-renowned experts at Duke University.

Dr. Folgar is active in many local and national professional organizations. He currently is a member of the American Academy of Ophthalmology, the American Society of Retina Specialists, and the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology. 

His work has been nationally recognized with research awards from the Retina Society, the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology, and the American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgeons.

He is also fluent in Spanish and French.

Locations Served: Mount Pleasant, Walterboro, Summerville & West Ashley I

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Internationally-recognized oculoplastic surgeon Dr. Gene Howard, MD, specializes in eye-related plastic and cosmetic services that can help you look and feel your best. Dr. Howard received a bachelor’s degree from Bowdoin College in Brunswick, Maine. He completed a master’s degree in public health, his medical degree, an internship in internal medicine, and a research fellowship at Johns Hopkins University.

After completing medical school, Dr. Howard worked for 2 years in East Africa and South Asia on international eye health projects. Upon returning to the United States, he completed his residency training in ophthalmology at the University of Illinois in Chicago and completed a fellowship in oculoplastic surgery and orbital oncology at the University of Iowa in Iowa City.

From 1991 until 1995, Dr. Howard was an assistant professor at the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) in the departments of ophthalmology, dermatology, and otolaryngology. He later served as a professor of ophthalmology at MUSC and held the Stanley & Theodore Feldberg endowed chair.

As an attending physician at MUSC, Dr. Howard served as consulting staff to the MUSC Hollings Cancer Center and the Department of Ophthalmology at the University of South Carolina in Columbia.

Dr. Howard served as a delegate to the South Carolina Medical Association and is a past president of the Charleston County Ophthalmological Society. Dr. Howard is currently a clinical professor at MUSC, a chairman of the surgical committee at the East Cooper Medical Hospital, is on the membership committee at the Charleston County Medical Society, and is one of the thousand experts in America evaluating on Faculty of 1000.

Locations Served: Mount Pleasant and West Ashley I

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Through a love for research, Dr. Sandoval has been involved in a variety of public presentations and published articles about various research projects. She has given oral presentations, been an invited panelist, and authored or co-authored articles on more than 200 occasions. She provides editorial reviews for many of the leading ophthalmic publications in the United States and Colombia.

Dr. Sandoval enjoys being able to see, evaluate, and provide feedback on new technology. She feels it keeps her mind fresh and she’s always learning new ideas and concepts. “It’s always exciting to know that what you are doing not only helps the person in front of you but reaches so many more people.”

She is so appreciative of the patients who commit to participate in these research studies and share her passion for improving medical care.

Location Served: Mount Pleasant

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Dr. Kerry D. Solomon, MD is a cataract, LASIK, and advanced vision correction specialist at Carolina Eyecare Physicians, which he joined in 2009. He is also the director of the Carolina Eyecare Research Institute, clinical professor of ophthalmology at the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC), and is the former president of the American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgeons (ASCRS). 

Dr. Solomon completed his fellowship in cataract and refractive surgery and corneal transplantation at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, Maryland. Prior to his fellowship, he completed his residency in ophthalmology at the University of Kentucky Medical Center in Lexington, Kentucky and an internship in medicine at Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut.

In addition, Dr. Solomon completed a fellowship in ophthalmic pathology at the University of Utah Health Sciences Center in Salt Lake City, Utah. He received both his doctorate in medicine and bachelor’s degree from the University of Vermont in Burlington, Vermont.

Over his 24 years of practicing medicine, Dr. Solomon has achieved status among the country’s best ophthalmic surgeons. He was one of the first in the country to perform laser-assisted cataract surgery, implant multifocal and astigmatic correcting lenses, and perform topography-guided LASIK. 

He has received dozens of awards, including the Lee Nordan Refractive Surgeon of the Year Award, an award given to the surgeon who has had the greatest impact in the field, by Cataract and Refractive Surgery Today. He has been ranked in the top 1% of ophthalmic surgeons nationwide in US News & World Report. 

Dr. Solomon has been ranked as one of “America’s Best Doctors” annually for cataract and refractive surgery since 2003. He has also been voted in the Top Fifty Opinion Leaders in Ophthalmology in the world by his peers since the inception of this award in 2005. He routinely speaks at both national and international meetings and hospitals, and to date has presented more than 600 lectures and live surgical demonstrations worldwide.

Finally, Dr. Solomon’s work has been recognized by multiple popular magazines and newspapers including the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, USA Today, Money, The Los Angeles Times, Chicago Tribune, Washington Post, The Saturday Evening Post, Redbook, and Reader’s Digest. 

He has also been featured on The Today Show, ABC World News Tonight and in television specials such as PBS’s “Cataract Surgery” as part of the “Healthy Body, Healthy Mind” series, which aired across the United States and over 140 countries.

Locations Served: Mount Pleasant and West Ashley I

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Erik M. Happ, MD, FACS has joined the Facial Cosmetic & Reconstructive Surgery team at Carolina Eyecare Physicians as an Oculoplastic Surgeon. Dr. Happ has already established an impressive career and is recognized nationally as a leader in the field of Oculoplastic & Orbital surgery. Upon graduation from Hahnemann University, Dr. Happ embarked on a path of excellence beginning with his internship in General Surgery at “the President’s Hospital”, the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, MD. He then entered active duty service as a US Naval Flight surgeon garnering multiple awards including the prestigious Navy Commendation Medal and participating in multiple deployments around the world. One of Dr. Happ’s proudest moments was being selected by NASA to provide launch medical support for two Space Shuttle missions, STS 98 and STS 106.

After honorable discharge from the Navy, Dr. Happ continued his training in Ophthalmology at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, Eye and Ear Institute where he served as the chief resident and was presented with the Jay G. Lynn Award as the most outstanding resident. He then trained under the internationally known, John S. Kennerdell, MD in Neuro-ophthalmic, Oculoplastic, and Orbital Surgery at the Allegheny General Hospital campus of Drexel University School of Medicine in Pittsburgh.

After taking a brief private practice position in Bainbridge Island, Washington, Dr. Happ was offered the opportunity to replace his mentor, Dr. Kennerdell back in Pittsburgh at Allegheny General Hospital. His career has been marked by several innovations in orbital and neuro-ophthalmic surgery culminating in the development of a trans-orbital approach to the skull base to treat aneurysms and tumors. A natural leader, Dr. Happ was named the Director of Neuro-ophthalmic trauma followed by being named the Department Chairman and System-wide division director of Ophthalmology for Allegheny Health Network.

Dr. Happ has always excelled in the area of functional and cosmetic oculoplastics and has pivoted his career in this direction, having started his own solo private practice and stepped away from academic medicine for the last several years. He performs a broad range of surgeries and treatments such as blepharoplasty, ptosis repair, entropion, and ectropion repair, dacryocystorhinostomy, functional botulinum toxin for blepharospasms and management of thyroid eye disease. He is also well versed in facial aesthetics and performs facial cosmetic surgery as well as injections of both Botox and dermal fillers and skin resurfacing procedures.

Dr. Happ enthusiastically accepted the position at Carolina Eyecare Physicians and is poised to provide state-of-the-art facial plastic surgical care in the Charleston area.

Locations Served: Mt. Pleasant, North Charleston, West Ashley I, Murrells Inlet

Dr. Tessa Clark, OD is a board-certified optometrist who specializes in comprehensive eye care, ocular disease management, pre-and post-operative care for cataract surgery and LASIK patients, family eye care, and contact lens fittings for patients of all ages. 

She earned her Bachelor of Arts in chemistry from Smith College in Northampton, MA, and attended optometry school at the University of Alabama School of Optometry in Birmingham, AL. 

Dr. Clark has worked with The Birmingham VA Medical Center and UAB Eye Care. She was honored with the Gold Key membership in the International Optometric Honor Society and was elected as the vice president and then President of the UABSO Student Ambassador program.

Dr. Clark worked with Student Volunteer Optometric Services to Humanity (SVOSH) and volunteered with Remote Area Medical (RAM) during a mission trip to Belize. Free comprehensive eye exams were performed.

She has received several awards, including the Dr. Sternberg Endowed Optometry Scholarship, in addition to being elected to the Marly Pineda All Pioneer Team. She is excited to be a part of the award-winning team at Carolina Eyecare Physicians.

Locations Served: Belle Hall and West Ashley I

Dr. Abby Vanderah was raised in Marshalltown, Iowa, and found her calling in optometry through a passion for improving people’s quality of life by preserving and enhancing their vision. She was also drawn to the profession’s meaningful social aspect—building connections and providing care to individuals from all walks of life.

She earned her Bachelor of Science degree from Loras College in Dubuque, IA, and went on to complete her Doctor of Optometry degree at the Illinois College of Optometry in Chicago, IL. Dr. Vanderah has proudly served as an optometrist in the United States Army for over 18 years and was recently promoted to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel.

Dr. Vanderah is a Fellow of the American Academy of Optometry and an active member of the American Optometric Association, Armed Forces Optometric Association, and South Carolina Optometric Association. She has participated in numerous humanitarian missions, providing eye care in Peru, Alabama, and on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota.

Committed to supporting organizations that assist disadvantaged and special needs children, Dr. Vanderah is also passionate about traveling, boating, ballroom dancing, and cherishing time with her son, Noah.

Dr. Vanderah will be seeing patients in our Mt. Pleasant office.