Eyeworld Daily News

EW SHOW DAILY 7 F orty years ago, a group of innovative ophthalmolo- gists frustrated with the slow acceptance of intraoc- ular lenses gathered to- gether in Dallas for the first meeting of the American Intra- Ocular Implant Society. Later changing its name to the American Society of Cataract & Refractive Surgery, the organization was founded on the conviction that it would serve as a catalyst for the field of ophthalmology by providing opportunities where innovative ideas could be developed, tested, questioned, shared, and eventually, if appropriate, adopted. That innovative spirit has continued to thrive at ASCRS, which is marking its 40th anniversary in Boston. ASCRS program chair Edward Holland, MD, and the ASCRS Clinical Committees have selected more than 1,300 papers, courses, posters, films, and symposia dedicated to forward-leaning topics, innovations in surgical treatment of glaucoma, complicated surgical cases, and advances in cornea and cataract surgeries. Throughout its 40-year history, ASCRS has kept a keen focus on innovation and has served as a guidepost for the practice of oph- thalmology as it has been forced to evolve in the face of advances in technology and sea changes in deliv- ery of medicine in the United States and beyond. Although it is helpful to reflect on how far ophthalmology has come in 40 years, ASCRS president Rick Lewis, MD, is at the helm of an organization working to help its 9,100 member physicians face the future through rigorous scholarship, valuable educational programming, strong legislative and The Resident and Fellow Pro- gram is one way that ASCRS is work- ing to meet that goal. In addition to special programming at the annual meeting designed specifically to meet the needs of the emerging ophthalmologist, this program provides residents and fellows with free membership and all of its benefits, including a subscription to the Journal of Cataract & Refractive Surgery. This year, a record 700 resi- dents and fellows will take advan- tage of the free ASCRS membership offered to them. Another way that ASCRS is working to support the future of ophthalmology is by encouraging women to enter the field and help- ing the entire profession understand that it needs to make changes to bring more women into the fold. "There is extraordinary great- ness in our profession. Cataract and refractive surgery have never been safer or more effective. The face of ophthalmology is also changing," Dr. Donnenfeld said. "Women now represent 50% of all ophthalmology residency graduates. ASCRS em- braces the diversity of the personal choices of today's ophthalmologists, including flexible hours, part-time employment and leaves of absence." At its heart, however, is the belief that advances in surgery and quality education will translate directly into better quality of life for patients. While today it is hard to imagine anterior segment surgery practice without the use of IOLs, ASCRS's founding members went immediately to work to ensure that IOLs were allowed to remain on the market and available to doctors and patients. They did so because they believed wholeheartedly that IOLs would be in the best interest of patients. The ethos behind that is an ongoing legacy that was established 40 years ago and continues to this day. "ASCRS advocates for our pa- tients and for access to the innova- tion that will directly benefit them," Dr. Donnenfeld said. "When the FDA called for a panel to evaluate LASIK, ASCRS provided the leader- ship that resulted in the FDA reaf- firming their endorsement of this procedure. When the first presby- opic IOLs became available, ASCRS was the one society that signed the petition supporting the premium IOL pathway. As ophthalmologists, we commit our daily lives to the advancement of our field, and ASCRS is committed to us." Happy 40th, ASCRS! EW ASCRS SYMPOSIUM, SAN DIEGO 2011 regulatory advocacy, and adaptation to shifting demographics. "Substantial changes in health- care delivery, access to patients, and monitoring are impacting the daily lives of every ophthalmologist and, most importantly, the patients we care for," Eric Donnenfeld, MD, ASCRS outgoing president, said in his speech at the 2013 ASCRS•ASOA Symposium & Congress in San Francisco. "These are complex and confusing times in medicine. As practicing ophthalmologists, we must require our national societies to step forward, represent our needs, voice our opinions, and demonstrate leadership based on what is in the best interest of our patients. We need our societies to educate the ophthalmologists of today and tomorrow. In fact, this is exactly what ASCRS has been doing and what we will continue to do." ASCRS•ASOA SYMPOSIUM & CONGRESS, BOSTON 2014 by Cindy Sebrell ASCRS: Facing forward after 40 years Enjoy a cupcake and some bubbly at the ASCRS 40th anniversary celebration today at 12 p.m. in the ASCRS•ASOA booth 663. specialists, Dr. Holland said. How- ever, studies show that somewhere from 7% to 48% of the patient pop- ulation has some type of dry eye. Dry eye is incredibly underdiag- nosed, Dr. Holland said. The panelists of the session included Eric D. Donnenfeld, MD, New York, Roger Steinert, MD, Irvine, Calif., and Vance Thompson, MD, Sioux Falls, S.D., and they discussed the role of dry eye technologies and therapies. Similarly, a crosslinking session featured a market overview, given by Stephen Slade, MD, Houston, and company presentations from CXLO (Encinitas, Calif.) and Avedro (Waltham, Mass.). Dr. Slade said that one of the reasons that he likes crosslinking is because it's a proactive treatment. A panel discussion with William B. Trattler, MD, Miami, A. John Kanellopoulos, MD, Athens, Greece, Maureen O'Connell, president of O'Connell Regulatory Consultants (North Reading, Mass.), and Anthony Natale, MD, venture partner with Aperture Venture Partners (New York), focused on some of the challenges and opportu- nities with this technology. Co-mod- erators were Dr. Slade and George Waring IV, MD, Charleston, S.C. Representatives from several companies spoke on the last panel of the day about industry perspec- tives on the topics discussed at OIS. Emmett T. Cunningham Jr., MD, PhD, MPH, San Francisco, closed the OIS@ASCRS with final comments. EW continued from page 6

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