About

R. Bin Wong is a Distinguished Research Professor of History and the Director of the UCLA Asia Institute. Before joining UCLA in 2004, he served as the Director of the Center for Asian Studies at UC Irvine, where he was also a Chancellor's Professor of History and Economics. His responsibilities at UCLA include fostering collaborations with a strong Asian component across campus, nationally, and internationally, including interdisciplinary initiatives in research, graduate training, and classroom curricula in K-16 settings. Wong's research focuses on Chinese patterns of political, economic, and social change, especially since the eighteenth century. His work examines these changes within Asian regional contexts and compares them with European patterns, contributing to the broader scholarly efforts to integrate world history with contemporary globalization. Among his notable publications is 'China Transformed: Historical Change and the Limits of European Experience,' published by Cornell University Press in 1997, which is well known in both its English and Chinese editions. He has authored or co-authored over eighty articles published across North America, East Asia, and Europe, in multiple languages including Chinese, English, French, German, and Japanese. His recent book, co-authored with Jean-Laurent Rosenthal, is 'Before and Beyond Divergence: The Politics of Economic Change in China and Europe,' published by Harvard University Press in 2011, with translations into Chinese, French, and Japanese underway. Wong has held visiting positions at institutions in China, France, Japan, Taiwan, and the United Kingdom, and since 2009, he has been a Distinguished Guest Professor at the Fudan University Institute for Advanced Study in Social Sciences.

Research topics

• Medicine
• Ophthalmology
• Computer Science
• Artificial Intelligence
• Surgery
• Radiology
• Optometry
• Dermatology
• Optics
• Oncology
• Biology
• Internal medicine

Selected publications

• Evaluation of implementing a school-based vision care program using mobile eye exam lanes

  medRxiv · 2025-12-27

  articleOpen access

  Abstract Purpose Visual impairment in children is a significant public health issue, especially for those from disadvantaged backgrounds. Vision screening by schools and pediatricians have had limited success in resolving this concern. This study examined the outcomes, challenges, and demographics of the MobilEyes program, a school-based mobile eye care initiative in Rochester, New York. Methods During the 2022-2023 academic year, students in PreK, K, 1st, 3rd, 5th, and 7th grade underwent visual acuity screening per New York State Guidelines. A positive screen was visual acuity <20/40 for kindergarteners or younger and <20/30 for 1st graders or older. Children who failed vision screening and whose parents provided consent for school-based eye examination subsequently underwent cycloplegic refraction and dilated fundus examination by a pediatric ophthalmologist. Demographics subgroups were analyzed by school, school region, and grade level. Results 1399 students from six schools underwent vision screening, of which 387 (27.7%) failed the initial screening. From those, 125 (32.3%) returned signed parental consent forms and 108 (27.9%) underwent full eye examinations. Of this group, 68 (63.0%) were prescribed glasses, and 40 (37.0%) did not require glasses prescription and were considered false positives. Significantly more urban students failed their vision screening than suburban students, 32.8% vs 22.5% (p<0.001), and urban students had a lower false positive vision screening result (meaning that they failed their vision screening but were found to have a normal exam) than suburban students 27.6% vs 48% (p=0.047). Across all schools we found statistically significant differences between grade levels in the number failing vision screening (p<0.001) and returning consent forms (p=0.021). Conclusion Our data highlights the need for additional support of school screening and full eye examinations, especially in urban regions. Future studies should address the challenges of high vision screening false positivity percentages and obtaining parental consents to perform eye examinations.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Incidence and characterization of retinal findings after SARS-CoV-2 infection in children

  Journal of American Association for Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus · 2025-10-15 · 1 citations

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  PublisherDOI

• Evaluation of 3D tablet-based stereoacuity test ASTEROID in children with normal and abnormal visual acuity

  Journal of American Association for Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus · 2024-05-07 · 1 citations

  article1st author
  PublisherDOI

• Does COVID-19 cause retinal hemorrhage?

  Journal of American Association for Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus · 2024-09-24

  editorial1st authorCorresponding
  PublisherDOI

• Reply

  Journal of American Association for Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus · 2024-11-29

  letter1st authorCorresponding
  PublisherDOI

• Longitudinal Choroidal Development in Preterm Infants

  Ophthalmology Science · 2023-07-04 · 4 citations

  articleOpen access

  PurposeTo characterize changes in subfoveal choroidal thickness in preterm infants from 30 to 60 weeks postmenstrual age (PMA).DesignThe prospective, observational Study of Eye Imaging in Preterm infantS (BabySTEPS) enrolled infants eligible for retinopathy of prematurity screening per the American Association of Pediatrics guidelines.SubjectsInfants imaged with investigational, hand-held optical coherence tomography (OCT) at ≥4 distinct imaging sessions between 30 to 60 weeks PMA as part of BabySTEPS.MethodsAverage choroidal thickness across the central subfoveal 1 millimeter in each eye at each time point was measured using custom segmentation software, and errors manually corrected by a trained grader. We prospectively collected birth history data. A segmented mixed model was used to analyze the change in choroidal thickness as a function of PMA, birth weight, and gestation age (GA).Main Outcome MeasuresCharacterization of normative subfoveal choroidal thickness values and choroidal growth rate between 30 to 60 weeks PMA.ResultsWe included 592 imaging sessions of 79 preterm infants (152 eyes). Mean (±standard deviation) GA was 27.5±2.5 weeks. Mean choroidal thickness was 141.4±34.5 μm at 30 weeks, 272.2±83.9 μm at 38 weeks, and 306.2±77.4 μm between 56 and 60 weeks. Between 30 and 60 weeks PMA, choroidal growth followed a biphasic model, with a linear growth rate of 14.8 μm/week (95% confidence interval (CI) 13.6-16.0) from 30 until 38.4 weeks then cessation of growth, with a growth rate of 0.3 μm/week (95% CI -1.1-1.6) from 38.4 to 60 weeks. Extremely low birth weight (<1000 g) and extremely preterm (GA <28 weeks) infants had significantly slower initial growth rates compared to very low and low birth weight and very preterm and preterm infants (ELBW 13.0 vs 21.0 μm/week, p<0.0001; and EPT 13.2 vs 18.0 μm/week, p=0.003).ConclusionsPreterm infant choroidal thickness experiences rapid linear growth from 30 to 38 weeks PMA, at which time growth nearly stops. These foundational measurements and identification of the impact of extremes of low birth weight and prematurity on choroidal development will be essential as researchers begin to understand the role of choroidal development in ocular and retinal health in human infants.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Systemic and ocular outcomes in patients with young-onset type 2 diabetes

  Journal of Diabetes and its Complications · 2023-12-21 · 2 citations

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  PublisherDOI

• Nicotinamide for Skin-Cancer Chemoprevention in Transplant Recipients

  New England Journal of Medicine · 2023 · 96 citations

  • Medicine
  • Dermatology
  • Oncology

  BACKGROUND: ) enhances the repair of ultraviolet (UV) radiation-induced DNA damage, reduces the cutaneous immunosuppressive effects of UV radiation, and reduces the incidence of keratinocyte cancers (including squamous-cell and basal-cell carcinomas) and actinic keratoses among high-risk immunocompetent patients. Whether oral nicotinamide is useful for skin-cancer chemoprevention in organ-transplant recipients is unclear. METHODS: In this phase 3 trial, we randomly assigned, in a 1:1 ratio, organ-transplant recipients who had had at least two keratinocyte cancers in the past 5 years to receive 500 mg of nicotinamide or placebo twice daily for 12 months. Participants were examined for skin lesions by dermatologists at 3-month intervals for 12 months. The primary end point was the number of new keratinocyte cancers during the 12-month intervention period. Secondary end points included the numbers of squamous-cell and basal-cell carcinomas during the 12-month intervention period, the number of actinic keratoses until 6 months after randomization, safety, and quality of life. RESULTS: A total of 158 participants were enrolled, with 79 assigned to the nicotinamide group and 79 to the placebo group. The trial was stopped early owing to poor recruitment. At 12 months, there were 207 new keratinocyte cancers in the nicotinamide group and 210 in the placebo group (rate ratio, 1.0; 95% confidence interval, 0.8 to 1.3; P = 0.96). No significant between-group differences in squamous-cell and basal-cell carcinoma counts, actinic keratosis counts, or quality-of-life scores were observed. Adverse events and changes in blood or urine laboratory variables were similar in the two groups. CONCLUSIONS: In this 12-month, placebo-controlled trial, oral nicotinamide therapy did not lead to lower numbers of keratinocyte cancers or actinic keratoses in immunosuppressed solid-organ transplant recipients. (Funded by the National Health and Medical Research Council; ONTRANS Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry number, ACTRN12617000599370.).

  PublisherDOI

• Integrated Visualization Highlighting Retinal Changes in Retinopathy of Prematurity From 3-Dimensional Optical Coherence Tomography Data

  JAMA Ophthalmology · 2022 · 9 citations

  • Artificial Intelligence
  • Medicine
  • Computer Science

  Importance: Early diagnosis of plus disease is critical in the management of retinopathy of prematurity (ROP). However, there is substantial interexpert disagreement in the diagnosis of plus disease based on vascular changes alone. Information derived from optical coherence tomography (OCT) may help characterize the severity of vascular and structural abnormalities in ROP. Objective: To describe integrated visualization of 3-dimensional (3-D) data from investigational swept-source OCT optimized to delineate retinal vascular and microanatomical features in eyes with and without ROP. Design, Setting, and Participants: This cross-sectional, observational report of OCT was captured in the prospective Study of Eye Imaging in Preterm Infants (BabySTEPS) designed in July 2016 at the Duke Health Intensive Care Nursery. Between December 2018 and August 2019, 2 preterm infants born at 24 and 30 weeks' gestation were enrolled, underwent ROP screening, and were imaged at those screening visits. Data at 36 weeks' postmenstrual age were analyzed via this visualization developed between September 2020 and May 2021. Main Outcomes and Measures: Superimposed en face retinal vascular shadow view (RVSV) montages and thickness maps were used along with OCT B-scans to evaluate retinal vasculature and cross-section in eyes with and without ROP. Results: In the right eyes of 2 infants, 3-D data were integrated and visualized from investigational bedside OCT imaging at the posterior pole. In the infant who developed type 1 ROP, RVSV-OCT confirmed presence of dilated and tortuous posterior pole vessels, shunting, and incomplete perifoveal vascular development, resulting in a temporal notch of avascular retina in zone 1. The thickness map revealed irregular pockets of thickening and thinning, and integrated visualization outlined the demarcation between thicker vascularized retina and thinner avascular fovea and presence of extraretinal neovascularization overlying elevated vessels in the superior arcades. In the infant without ROP (stage 0), RVSV-OCT revealed no abnormal vascular findings at the posterior pole. The integrated visualization showed a dome-shaped retinal thickening at the fovea, which was confirmed as macular edema. Conclusions and Relevance: In 2 preterm infants in BabySTEPS, 3-D visualization of OCT findings during the ongoing ROP disease process demonstrated supplemental information about the retinal vasculature and microanatomy that can be useful to clinicians. These additional details provided by OCT could be integrated into future ROP screening methods with artificial intelligence-based analytics.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Fungal Infection After Descemet Membrane Endothelial Keratoplasty: Incidence and Outcomes

  Cornea · 2022-08-24 · 6 citations

  article1st authorCorresponding

  PURPOSE: The aim of the study was to describe the incidence, presentation, management, and outcomes of fungal infection after Descemet membrane endothelial keratoplasty (DMEK). METHODS: Retrospective case series of culture-proven fungal infections after DMEK reported in the literature, directly by surgeons, and to the Eye Bank Association of America from January 1, 2011, to December 31, 2020. RESULTS: The domestic incidence of fungal infections, fungal keratitis, and fungal endophthalmitis after DMEK from 2011 to 2020 was 3.5, 1.3, and 2.2 per 10,000 cases, respectively, with no significant increasing trend. Thirty-four cases were identified, 14 (41.2%) published and 20 (58.8%) unpublished. Donor tissue fungal cultures were performed in 20 of the 34 (58.8%) cases and were positive in 19 of the 20 (95.0%), all but one Candida species. Recipient fungal cultures were performed in 29 of the 34 (85.3%) cases and were positive in 26 of the 29 (89.7%), all but one Candida species. Infection presented a mean of 33 ± 38 days (median 23, range 2-200, outlier 949) after transplantation: 25 (73.5%) with endophthalmitis and 9 (26.5%) with keratitis. Topical, intrastromal, intracameral, intravitreal, or systemic antifungal therapy was used in all 27 eyes with treatment data. Surgical intervention (DMEK explantation or partial removal, repeat endothelial keratoplasty, penetrating keratoplasty, and/or pars plana vitrectomy) was required in 21 of the 27 (77.8%) eyes. The corrected distance visual acuity at the last follow-up was ≥20/40 in 13 of the 27 (48.1%) eyes and counting fingers or worse in 6 of the 27 (22.2%) eyes. CONCLUSIONS: Fungal infection is a rare but serious complication of DMEK that results in counting fingers or worse corrected distance visual acuity in nearly a quarter of eyes.

  PublisherDOI

Frequent coauthors

• Cynthia A. Toth

  Duke University

  8 shared

• Shwetha Mangalesh

  College of Medical Sciences

  7 shared

• Nathan Milne

  6 shared

• Du Tran-Viet

  Duke University

  6 shared

• Glenn Yiu

  University of California, Davis

  5 shared

• Irena Tsui

  Doheny Eye Institute

  5 shared

• Sharon F. Freedman

  Duke Medical Center

  5 shared

• Sina Farsiu

  Duke University

  5 shared

Education

• Ph.D., History

  University of California, Berkeley

  1992

• M.A., History

  University of California, Berkeley

  1988

• B.A., History

  University of California, Berkeley

  1985