Kanwar Amarjit Singh, MD
The History of The Eye Centers of Racine and Kenosha
The Eye Centers of Racine and Kenosha, LLC (ECRK) was founded in 1983 by the late Kanwar Amarjit Singh, MD. He was a general ophthalmologist who passed away on October 28, 2019.
His legacy of uncompromising patient-focused care and advancement of the field of ophthalmology live on today through the work of Dr. I. Paul Singh (son), Dr. R. Krishna Sanka, Dr. Stephen Pruett, Dr. Jeff Banas, Dr. Jessica Schiffbauer and the dedicated staff of this almost 40-year old practice.
The company started with just one location – in Racine, WI on the campus of the main local hospital (Wheaton Franciscan All Saints) which is now part of the Ascension Hospital Group. It opened a second location on the campus of Kenosha Memorial Hospital in the ‘90s.
In 2005, the Eye Center of Kenosha moved to the MedCare West building, with a larger and more modern office on the main (first) floor. This space currently houses a number of state-of-the-art equipment pieces that enable in-house surgery for lid surgery, laser floater treatment/removal, and refractive surgery.
In 1977, Dr. Kanwar Singh did the first lens implant in the state of Wisconsin. He was also the first to perform refractive surgery known as radial keratotomy (RK) back in 1983.
In 1995, Dr. Singh became the first eye surgeon in Wisconsin to perform refractive surgery known as photorefractive keratectomy (PRK).
By the late ‘90s, Dr. Singh became the first surgeon in SE Wisconsin to perform LASIK vision correction eye surgery. During the same time, Dr. Singh became the first to perform in-office CO2 blepharoplasty (eyelid surgery).
Carrying on his father’s legacy of adopting the latest surgical innovations, Dr. I. Paul Singh did the first iStent glaucoma device implant in Wisconsin in 2012. This stent was the first of the MIGS procedures.
MIGS (Micro-Invasive Glaucoma Surgery) has revolutionized the surgical treatment of glaucoma management for thousands of our patients and Dr. Paul continues to be the first to bring these new glaucoma technologies to the area. He has brought the Hydrus, Kahook dual blade, Omni viscodilation, and Xen stent implantation to our patients in SE Wisconsin and beyond.
Dr. Paul was also instrumental in bringing vitreolysis (laser floater removal) technology to the Midwest region of the United States and was the first to perform this in-office procedure in southeast Wisconsin in 2013. Since then, he and his practice partner, R. Krishna Sanka, MD have done over 5,000 vitreolysis cases.
Dr. Paul has been a leader in bringing efficacious glaucoma drug delivery to our patient base in Wisconsin. He was the first surgeon to implant the iDose and Durysta glaucoma medication delivery systems to help decrease the drop burden on our patients who have glaucoma.
He was also the first physician to insert both Dexycu and Dextenza, which are both bio-absorbing steroid medications that decrease the need for post-surgical steroid drops.
In 2019, Dr. R. Krishna Sanka became the first ophthalmologist in Wisconsin to perform SMILE surgery to reduce the need for glasses or contacts. This revolutionary procedure balances the safety of PRK and comfort of LASIK.
Dr. Sanka was also the first in Wisconsin to implant the Envista lens during cataract surgery back in 2018.
In 2019, Dr. Paul was the first in Wisconsin to implant the Envista lens with enhanced material.
In early 2020, Dr. Paul became the first in Wisconsin to implant the Envista Toric (to treat astigmatism) with enhanced material.
