Background
Dr Alyra Shaw is a Senior Research Assistant in the School of Optometry and Institute of Health and Biomedical Innovation (IHBI) at QUT.
Dr Shaw graduated from the QUT with a Bachelor of Applied Science in Optometry in 2001. She then worked in optometry practices for three years before returning to QUT in 2005 to commence PhD studies. Under the supervision of Professor Michael Collins, her PhD thesis “Eyelid pressure on the cornea” was completed in 2009 and was funded through an Australian Postgraduate Research Award and a Cornea and Contact Lens Society of Australia Award.
In her thesis, novel methods were developed to quantify the contact region and pressure distribution between the upper eyelid and the ocular surface. This work is important for understanding the eyelid’s role in tear distribution and the interaction between the eyelids and contact lenses on the eye. Dr Shaw’s thesis was awarded a QUT Outstanding Doctoral Thesis Award in recognition of the exceptional contribution and standard of excellence demonstrated in postgraduate research practice.Dr Shaw has presented at national and international conferences. Her current research interests include

• further investigation of eyelid pressure and contact with the ocular surface
• corneal biomechanics.

 
Research highlights
http://www.qut.edu.au/research/research-projects/contact-lens-and-visual-optics-laboratory
http://www.qut.edu.au/research/research-projects/eyelid-pressure
http://www.qut.edu.au/research/research-projects/corneal-topography