Mark J. Rivellese, M.D.

Biography

Dr. Rivellese was born and grew up in Long Island, New York. He is an honors graduate of Stony Brook University where he obtained both his undergraduate and medical school degrees. He then completed his ophthalmology residency at Rush University Medical Center in Chicago and his retina fellowship at New England Eye Center at Tufts University, which ranks among the leading retina research and clinical trial centers in the country.

For as long as he can remember, Dr. Rivellese has always been interested in science. It wasn’t until he assisted for the first time at a microscope that he knew working in microsurgery was the perfect career for him. When asked why, Dr. Rivellese replied that vitreoretinal surgery was “not only challenging but also very rewarding.” The most rewarding thing to Dr. Rivellese about his job, however, is being involved in the lives of many people and helping them through difficult medical conditions. One of these medical conditions is Ocular cancer, in which Dr. Rivellese can remember every patient he has worked with over the past 20 years. Being privileged to share in each patient’s treatment has had a profound impact on Dr. Rivellese; it has helped shape him as the physician he is today.

While developing the oncology service at Georgia Retina, he also recognized a great need for qualified services for screening and treating premature infants at risk for complications from Retinopathy of Prematurity (ROP), a potential blinding condition. Dr. Rivellese established a service within Georgia Retina to screen and treat these infants. Dr. Rivellese is still one of the few physicians in Georgia with specialized training in the diagnosis and treatment of Retinopathy of Prematurity (ROP).

Not only has Dr. Rivellese served as the first managing partner for Georgia Retina from 2006 to 2014, but he has also been a Castle Connolly Top Doc several times and was named as an Atlanta Top Doc in 2017 by Atlanta Magazine.

Outside of the office, Dr. Rivellese studies music and plays the saxophone. His musical performances range from the music ministry at his church, where he is very active as a volunteer, to jazz, rock, and blues bands in Atlanta. Physical fitness is important to Dr. Rivellese; he enjoys water skiing, weight training, surfing.

Dr. Rivellese has been married to his high-school sweetheart for 24 fantastic years, and together they have two wonderful children.