Editorial April 2017- Join us in Lisbon, says EuCornea president Friedrich Kruse

I am honoured to have the opportunity to write the editorial for this special issue of EuroTimes which focuses on cornea. These are exciting times for cornea specialists and the articles in this magazine reflect some of the latest developments in our field. The cover story focuses on Descemet’s membrane endothelial keratoplasty (DMEK). As EuroTimes Contributing Editor Dermot McGrath points out, DMEK has come a long way in a few short years, although there are many challenges to be met before we can say that it is a firmly established procedure. The cover story looks at these challenges through the eyes of my respected colleagues Harminder Dua, Sadeer B Hannush, Gerrit Melles, Donald TH Tan and Pierre Fournié, and I think you will find their comments enlightening and educational. We are always looking for new therapies and we also have an interesting story looking at the new regenerating agent Cacicol, which, according to Dr Salvador Garcia-Delpech, seems to be a potentially useful, alternative, non-invasive therapeutic approach in the management of neurotrophic keratopathy and persistent epithelial defects. The annual EuCornea Congress always provides us with fascinating insights into ongoing research, and this month’s EuroTimes discusses a study from Dr Paolo Rama presented at the 7th EuCornea Congress in Copenhagen, Denmark. Dr Rama’s study showed that most patients with moderate to severe limbal stem cell deficiency (LSCD) due to corneal burns experienced reduced ocular symptoms for up to 10 years after treatment with an implant containing limbal stem cells donated and expanded from their fellow eyes. The magazine also looks at a study which shows that freezing autologous eye platelet-rich plasma (E-PRP) for use as an eye drop preparation can enhance its healing effects for the ocular surface. The study was presented at the XXXIV Congress of the ESCRS in Copenhagen, Denmark, by Dr Mauro Tiveron Jr, a member of the investigational group of Prof Jorge L Alió in VISSUM, Miguel Hernandez University, Alicante, Spain.

The annual EuCornea Congress always provides us with fascinating insights into ongoing research

As president of EuCornea, I am looking forward to learning about the latest research at the 8th EuCornea Congress in Lisbon, Portugal. The Congress, which takes place from 6–7 October, will precede the XXXV Congress of the ESCRS and we are expecting a large attendance of delegates, who will get the opportunity to hear presentations from some of the key opinion leaders in cornea. This year’s meeting will include focus symposia dealing with the treatment of neurotrophic keratopathy, allergic eye disease, infectious keratitis, as well ocular tumours. A special focus session will highlight controversies in corneal treatment. Skill transfer symposia will deal with corneal imaging and long-term results of keratoplasty. Finally, a number of instructional courses are designed to enable participants to acquire practical knowledge of lamellar grafting, diagnostic techniques for dry eye, crosslinking, corneal gluing and eye banking. I will have the honour and privilege of addressing my fellow delegates at the opening ceremony and I look forward to seeing you all in Lisbon. Finally, let me talk briefly about our society. EuCornea promotes personal relationships and the exchange of scientific knowledge and practical skills among corneal specialists in Europe, and the society also encourages and supports scientific research in the field of cornea and ocular surface disease in Europe. We also aim to promote the dissemination of the highest level of knowledge in the field of ophthalmology, specifically in cornea and ocular surface disease, among ophthalmologists and the public, and to promote an efficient collaboration with similar organisations worldwide. These are all excellent objectives and if you are not a member of our society I would urge you to join us. Further information is available at: www.eucornea.org Prof Friedrich Kruse is Head, Department of Ophthalmology, University Hospital Erlangen, Germany, and President of EuCornea