As with all well organised conferences, much of the benefit is the opportunity to network with fellow professionals. There was much to be excited about this year with heady discussions over the new CET arrangements, the rumours about the withdrawal of Fluorets from sale, and private views for a select few of pre-Optrafair instrument launches.
There were six strands of education running concurrently over two days, with key lectures taking place alongside seminars and workshops. Plenty for the record 600 plus delegates to enjoy.
Lectures
Myopia was a key theme this year. One of the first lectures concerned the 'Paradox of myopia', presented by Dr Jeremy Guggenheim (Hong Kong). Myopia has a significant genetic component and recent research advances have highlighted more than 20 'myopia-susceptibility' genes. However, the 'tsunami-like' rise in the prevalence of myopia afflicting parts of the Far East points very much to environmental influences that somehow interact with genes to result in myopic expression. Factors such as peripheral defocus and light exposure have all been studied, and where deliberate interventions are looked at, animal models are being used. Guggenheim emphasised that while these have obvious limitations (they are not human!), such studies add to our knowledge significantly.
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