After graduating from the Tohoku University School of Medicine in 1957 Dr Satoshi Ishikawa (Figure 1) joined the Department of Ophthalmology of the University of Tokyo School of Medicine. In 1958 he became an assistant professor at the Department of Ophthalmology, School of Medicine, University of Tokyo. In 1963 he was awarded a Fulbright Fellowship to study at the New York University. Two years later he became an associate professor there. After returning to Japan in 1965 he became a lecturer at the Department of Ophthalmology, Tokyo University Medical School. In 1971 he was appointed as the first department head of the Ophthalmology Department at the Kitasato University School of Medicine and served as the dean in 1994, the Director of the Kitasato Institute Hospital Environmental Centre in 1998, and Advisor at the Kitasato Institute in 2005.
Figure 1.
Dr Satoshi Ishikawa.
During his initial tenure at the University of Tokyo Dr Ishikawa was interested in Neuro-ophthalmology, strabismus/amblyopia, and toxicology. He continued in clinical and research work, mainly in these fields, at the New York University. For these endeavours he returned home after having numerous achievements. In 1959 he established the Japan Neuro-ophthalmology Group, which served as the foundation for the Japanese Society of Neuro-ophthalmology. Moreover, he developed the field of toxicology and focused on the chronic toxicity of organophosphorus. He wrote a paper on the effects of anticholinesterase drugs on esotropia and myasthenia gravis, the point of contact between Neuro-ophthalmology, strabismus/myopia, and toxicology. In 1968 he was awarded the 7th General Medicine Award for ‘Esotropia and Miotic Agents’, and in 1975 the 28th General Medicine Award for ‘Ocular Symptoms of Myasthenia Gravis and Cholinesterase’. Dr Ishikawa remained active in the development of electronic pupillometers and he later perfected the infrared electronic pupillometer, which has been applied in the clinical setting. His research and clinical works went beyond the field of Ophthalmology, covering topics such as visual display terminal syndrome, sick house syndrome, and chemical sensitivity. He also served as the chairman of the scientific research committee of the Ministry of Health, Labour, and Welfare. In 1996 he delivered a special commemorative lecture at the 31st Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Environmental Medicine, where he was the first Japanese recipient of the Jonathan Forman Award. He also received the Japanese Ophthalmological Society Award in 1998 for his ‘Research on Ocular Toxicity of Organophosphorus’. Dr Ishikawa received the Japanese Ophthalmological Society Special Contribution Award in 2003 for his brilliant feats in the development of ophthalmic science.
He actively pioneered the field of Neuro-ophthalmology in Japan by establishing the Japanese Society of Neuro-ophthalmology. He also served as councillor and director of the Japanese Ophthalmological Society, honorary member and director of the Japanese Ophthalmological Society, executive director of the International Society of Neuro-ophthalmology, board member of the American Society of Clinical Environmental Medicine, director of the Japanese Society of Autonomic Neurology, and president of the Japanese Society of Clinical Environmental Medicine. Additionally, he held important positions in several academic societies. He contributed greatly to the development of medical science by organising numerous scientific meetings, including the 6th International Neuro-ophthalmology Society Congress in Hakone, Japan in 1986, the 96th Annual Meeting of the Japanese Ophthalmological Society in 1992, and the 50th Annual Meeting of the Japanese Society of Autonomic Neurology in 1997. Outside Japan, he received the Foreign Minister’s Commendation for Overseas Technical Cooperation in Algeria.
He trained students from Korea, Taiwan, China, Thailand, France, Peru, Brazil, Ghana, Algeria, Germany, and the United States.
Despite being strict with himself and others in his work Dr Ishikawa enjoyed playing the ’cello and golf during his spare time. He was a cheerful and talkative person who excelled in the academe and in sports. He enjoyed socialising with both young and old people inside and outside Japan over food and drinks (Figure 2).
Figure 2.
From left to right: Dr Satoshi Ishikawa; Dr Adolphe Neetens; Mrs Sonoko Ishikawa; Dr Alfred Huber; and Dr Thomas R Hedges Jr at the 1980 International Neuro-ophthalmology Society meeting in Valbella, Switzerland.
We are deeply saddened by the news of his passing. It is with great regret that we must hereby bid him an eternal farewell. I would like to express my deepest sympathies and offer my prayers for his soul in memory of his achievements and legacy.