The California Retina Institute

Dr. Silva is, to put it plainly, a total rockstar. Earlier this year, my husband began losing vision in his eye, which was really terrifying, considering we're only in our 30's, he's the sole provider, and we have a baby coming soon. As soon as he told me what he was experiencing, we scheduled an appointment with his regular ophthalmologist, who found nothing concerning. He recommended we contact a retina specialist who could do more in-depth testing. I called place after place, with everyone telling me that there would be no availability until weeks or months out, or that our insurance wouldn't cover the services. I must've called at least 10 places, it was really discouraging. Then, by the grace of God, I found Dr. Silva. I called and, to be honest, he didn't sound like a typical doctor. His demeanor is extremely down to earth and friendly, and he spoke in layman's terms instead of intimidating me with medical jargon I wouldn't have understood. He let me explain the symptoms my husband was experiencing without interruption, and after I was done he said something to the effect of "That sounds pretty serious and I'd rather he not have to wait to get care", which gave me immediate stress relief. Dr. Silva was in the middle of a busy and hectic transition from his old office to a brand new office in a different city, and still he found a way to prioritize my husband's condition. I really feel like Dr. Silva was an answered prayer. After the appointment, Dr. Silva gave us the difficult news that my husband's retina had completely detached from his eye. I don't know anything about the anatomy of eyes nor how these things happen, but he assured me that he could repair my husband's eye. He was very honest about the recovery and the rate of success with this type of surgery, but he was confident. He was confident in his work, he was confident in his abilities, and therefore I was confident. The day of surgery came and went, and with each passing follow-up appointment (at Dr. Silva's beautiful brand-new office in San Jose) we got good, encouraging news! The surgery was successful, and with time and patience, my husband's vision has returned to what he had prior to the retinal detachment. The equipment at the California Retina Institute is top-notch and so incredibly high-tech, it's pretty mind-blowing. Each room has a different machine and even though we don't really understand the mechanics of it all, it's so impressive and we really feel like we're getting the very best care available. Dr. Silva is top tier. I couldn't recommend him enough for anyone who has potential retinal work that needs to be done. My husband and I can confidently say that 5 stars is not enough, I doubt there's anyone better in this field than Dr. Silva. I can't stress it enough; you're doing yourself a disservice if you choose to get care elsewhere. As a bonus, Dr. Silva's staff at the Retina Institute are so kind and just as personable as he is. We look forward to continued care from Dr. Silva and the California Retina Institute for years to come. I honestly wish we had this type of confidence in all of our specialty doctors!

I had a retinal tear recently that occured over a weekend. I was very happy to come across Dr. Silva who was able to take care of it right away, on a Sunday. His qualifications are impressive and he has solid experience. The appointments have been smooth and professional. And both Dr. Silva and his staff are very responsive, were able to provide whatever I needed promptly. I would highly recommend California Retina Institute and Dr. Silva.

I was seen on short notice for a partially detached retina. Doctor Silva was able to accommodate me on short notice, and secure a surgical location in less than 24 hours. My surgery was successful. He even made time on the weekend for follow up visits. Doctor Silva is incredibly knowledgeable and skilled, in addition to having the patience and heart to provide good care throughout the entire process. He makes himself available and it's clear he prioritizes his patients outcomes above all else. Would definitely recommend.

Dr Silva and his staff are awesome. So positive and reassuring when I was urgently referred with a retinal hemorrhage & what turned out to be a vein inclusion & started injection treatments immediately. Even came in on the weekend to make sure I got the best treatment possible. My vision has improved tremendously with no pain. I would highly recommend CA Retinal Institute to anyone facing similar issues!

I could not have been more pleased with the service provided by Dr. Silva when my husband experienced a partial retinal detachment. He saw us after hours on a Wednesday and quickly secured surgical space to do the procedure as promptly as possible. He is incredibly knowledgeable and explained everything in great detail so we knew what to expect along the way. He is extremely accessible when it comes to urgent/emergent conditions. We are so grateful for being referred to him and I will do so in the future for anyone who has retinal concerns!

My 3 year old son kicked me in the eye while we were playing. I saw a bright flash of light and googled it and saw that I should go to the ER to be evaluated. I started looking and found Dr. silva. I called at 7:15 AM on Sunday morning and he called me back at 7:25. He got me in at 9AM. I had a tear in the back of my eye, he was able to fix in the office. He is knowledgeable, has great bedside manner, a good sense of humor and is accommodating. I live an hour away but would drive 3 hours to see him if I needed to. Thanks so much Doc, I wish there were more doctors like you.

Dr. Silva was excellent-- I saw a number of retinal specialists before seeing him and he was the only one to explain everything in an honest and accessible way. He was incredibly responsive when I reached out outside of my appointments and went above and beyond to follow up after I had surgery. I would not hesitate to recommend him to any of my friends and family!

On Saturday morning, I was at work and started noticing random flashing light in my right eye at around 4am. Knowing I'm at a higher risks for having retina detachment due to being severely near sighted, it was a huge concern. Immediately gave my optometrist a call to his emergency contact number as soon as I got off shift. Unfortunately, he wasn't in the office that day, but he knew the severity of a possible retina detachment (blindness) so gave me numbers to 2 other eye surgery centers in town. Once again, neither places could see me until at least Monday. Lucky for me, since we were planning on driving up north to the Bay Area that day already, I figured I might as well contact one of the eyes surgery centers here. I saw California Retina Institute on google search shows to open 24/7, thought it was odd, but I gave them a call anyway. To my surprise, Dr. Silva picked up the call himself. Told him my symptoms and that we live several hours away, was hoping he could get me in the next day. Astonishingly, he said he could see me the same day, and asked if 7pm would be enough time for us to get to the office A little of his background, which I had to make sure I look it up before hand, in case I'd end up needing to get surgery from him, which I did. Graduated from Harvard, Cambridge, Stanford, and Wharton university, respectively. Just seeing that was more than impressive enough for me, moreover, he's been on faculty staff at Stanford University since 2014. As we were driving, he called me personally from his cellphone to see where we were at, and if we were arriving earlier, he could see me earlier if needs to due to the urgency of the matter. Since he was going back n forth between his office and Stanford University, he decided to have us come to Stanford University Eye Institute instead since it'd work out better time n distance wise. When we arrive, it was obviously after hour, the building was locked, but he met up with us personally and immediately took me in to start running different eye exams. It ended up being a retina tear, which wasn't as critical as retina detachment, but if left untreated, there's a 50/50% chance of it ends up detaching eventually within days or weeks. Evidently, it was a no brainer for me to say yes to surgery. Once again, I thought I'd have to at least come back the next day for it, since it was almost 8pm, to my disbelief, Dr.Silva said he could do it right away, which would only take about 5mins, no need for any anesthesia. He did a laser treatment which helped seal the tear. It wasn't painful at all, just a little uncomfortable when super bright light keeps shooting straight into your eyeball for a good 10secs, several rounds. This was 100% the BEST medical experience I have had with any provider or facility. I really can't recommend or rave enough about Dr. Silva and California Retina Institute! If you have any major eyes issues, I highly highly recommend Dr. Silva!