Professor Robyn Guymer, Associate Professor Michael Lawless and Dr Nathan Kerr – names synonymous with the ophthalmic frontier in retinal disease, cataract and glaucoma, respectively – will be sharing the latest advances in their subspecialties at Ophthalmology Updates! in August.
Brainchild of Sydney retinal ophthalmologist Professor Adrian Fung, the Ophthalmology Updates! Conference was born out of the need that all ophthalmologists require constant upskilling in ophthalmic subspecialty topics.
Started in 2016, it is retuning as a stand-alone event in August 2023, following a hiatus in 2020 and 2021 due to COVID, and was combined with RANZCO’s NSW conference in 2022.
“I founded the concept of Ophthalmology Updates! because I realised, when I came out of fellowship, I knew a lot about my subspecialty, but I was losing touch with other subspecialties, so it was a good way to keep up-to-date with what’s going on in all subspecialties,” Fung says.
Taking place on 26-27 August at Fullerton Hotel in Sydney, the event is designed for general ophthalmologists who want to consolidate their knowledge and learn about new advances in a range of subspecialties; for subspecialty ophthalmologists who want a refresher on other subspecialties; and for registrars preparing for RANZCO examinations.
The program features 13 speakers; they will deliver a three-part presentation, each lasting 15 minutes, on a common subspecialty condition, a ‘frontier’ topic on a topical subject (but not in trials or experimental), and a case-based discussion.
Spotlight on subspecialties
Deputy director of the Centre for Eye Research Australia and a senior retinal specialist at the Royal Victorian Eye and Ear Hospital, Professor Guymer will be discussing emerging treatments for neovascular AMD and geographic atrophy.
She is currently investigating new strategies for treating early stages of AMD and is working to identify novel imaging and functional biomarkers and surrogate endpoints to improve the feasibility of conducting early intervention trials.
Dr Kerr’s presentation will focus on integrating Alcon’s Hydrus microstent into clinical practice for primary open-angle glaucoma, plus new approaches to the subconjunctival space.
Having completed a prestigious glaucoma fellowship at Moorfields Eye Hospital, Kerr serves as a glaucoma section editor for Clinical and Experimental Ophthalmology and is a principal investigator in glaucoma at the Centre for Eye Research Australia.
A/Prof Lawless was the first ophthalmologist in Australia and New Zealand to perform SMILE Pro and one of the first in the world to perform LASIK using the ZEISS Visumax 800 laser system. His lecture will provide 10 pointers that surgeons can implement to make them better cataract and refractive surgeons, as well as discuss the latest IOL technologies and their role in practice.
Professor Dinesh Selva will deliver a lecture on oculoplastics, in which he will discuss surgical video vignettes and endoscopic orbital surgery. Prof Selva was appointed to the foundation chair of Ophthalmology & Visual Sciences at the University of Adelaide in 2004. He is chairman of the South Australian Institute of Ophthalmology, University of Adelaide and has published over 600 peer-reviewed papers and book chapters.
The conference is approved for 12 Level 1 RANZCO and 10 Orthoptic Australia CPD points.
For more information, visit https://www.ophthalmologyupdates.com.
More reading
The surprising success story behind ‘Ophthalmology Updates!’
Ophthalmology Updates! 2019 – Part 1
Ophthalmology Updates! – Part 2