2ND ESCRS GLAUCOMA DAY

In september 2011, the EsCRs held its inaugural Glaucoma Day in Vienna, in partnership with the European Glaucoma society (EGs). Following the success of that meeting, the 2nd EsCRs Glaucoma Day will be held in Milan on Friday september 7, 2012. The programme has been put together by Prof Carlo Traverso (italy), president of the EGs, Dr Fotis Topouzis (Greece) of the EGs Programme Committee, and myself. The 2012 programme will differ in format and content from last year's meeting. instead of focussing solely on glaucoma surgery and its various aspects, this year's meeting will cover a wide range of topics related to glaucoma that we believe will be of broad general interest to practitioners. The format will consist of 10 focussed discussions around key topics, including imaging, visual function, neuroprotection, iOP measurement and various aspects of surgery. Each area of focussed discussion will be guided by three brief introductory talks by experts in the respective areas and will be designed to set the scene for subsequent discussion. The names of the speakers will be announced shortly pending confirmation of their availability. We envisage that the focussed discussion format will permit much more audience participation and interaction than the standard lecture-style format. The meeting will start with an introduction and welcome by Prof Traverso. The first sessions of the morning will focus on the sensitivity and specificity of diagnostic testing in the detection of glaucoma and glaucoma progression, followed by a discussion around the dilemma of comparing optic disc and retinal nerve fibre structure with visual function.

This will be followed after a short break with discussions on medical therapy, including the generic prescription of glaucoma medications, a topic of increasing factor in glaucoma practice. An update on neuroprotection and a discussion of iOP measurement will follow. The first of these sessions will update the audience on recent advances in the basic science of neuroprotection, stem cells and genetics. The latter session will discuss, among other things, the relative merits of the new instruments for measuring iOP. Before lunch, the keynote lecturer Leonardo Mastropasqua, professor and chairman of the University Eye Clinic at the University of Chieti, will talk about 'Trans-scleral outflow in glaucoma'. Prof Mastropasqua has a distinguished track record in glaucoma research and we are very grateful that he has kindly agreed to give the keynote lecture.

After lunch, the afternoon sessions will all be dedicated to the surgical management of glaucoma. We hope to cover a range of aspects of glaucoma surgery, from the 'old chestnuts' such as cataract surgery in glaucoma and angle closure, to the new minimally invasive surgical devices and more modern cataract-related considerations in patients with glaucoma, such as multifocal iOLs. While a number of the expert speakers will be from italy, reflecting the location and audience, we have invited a selection of speakers from across Europe. The meeting will finish with closing remarks from myself. We anticipate that the programme will be interesting and stimulating and will provide attendees with a useful update on progress in glaucoma research as well as practical advice on management of glaucoma in everyday practice.