Dr. Amanda Lakusta

Dr. Amanda Lakusta is a board-certified ophthalmologist who, as a military child, lived in Texas, California, Hawaii, Arizona, and Montana before completing high school in South Dakota. 

She attended the University of South Dakota on an academic scholarship, earning her undergraduate degree in 2001 and graduating Summa Cum Laude. She then continued at USD's School of Medicine, earning her M.D. in 2005. After medical school, she moved to Boston for her internship at a Harvard-affiliated hospital and then to Portland, Oregon, for her ophthalmology residency at the Oregon Health and Science University’s Casey Eye Institute, one of the nation’s top ten ophthalmology training programs, completing her training in 2009. 

Following residency, Dr. Lakusta served in the U.S. Air Force, initially stationed at Lackland Air Force Base, where she trained residents in cataract surgery at the Joint Air Force-Army residency program. Her military career included deployments to Haiti for earthquake relief and to Afghanistan during the height of the surge in 2010 and 2011, where she was part of the head and neck trauma team, providing care for U.S. and NATO forces, Afghan soldiers, and civilians with ocular and facial trauma. 

Upon returning to the States, she served as Chief of Ophthalmology at Langley Air Force Base, before separating from the military and pursuing private practice. In addition to her military service, Dr. Lakusta has participated in overseas surgical and medical missions in Ghana, Nepal, and South Africa. She is a Fellow of the American Academy of Ophthalmology and an active member of Women in Ophthalmology. Dr. Lakusta’s husband is an F-35 pilot at Naval Air Station Lemoore, which happily brought the couple and their two young children to the Central Valley. Prior to moving to California, she practiced in private practice in Virginia and Maryland. 

Dr. Lakusta is thrilled to be part of the Visalia Eye Center team, where she is dedicated to providing excellent ophthalmic care to patients in the community. Additionally, she is experienced in blepharoplasty surgery and cosmetic treatments, including Botox, fillers, radiofrequency microneedling and other laser treatment modalities.