Lisbon welcomes thousands of delegates to XXXV ESCRS Congress

Professor David Spalton, President of the ESCRS THE XXXV Congress of the ESCRS opens today in Lisbon, Portugal, with more than 9,000 delegates from 118 countries registered to attend the meeting. The Feira International de Lisboa (FIL) conference centre has been extremely busy in the days leading up to the congress, as the FIL is also hosting the 8th EuCornea Congress, which concludes today. Delegates also gathered in large numbers for the ESCRS Glaucoma Day and the WSPOS Subspecialty Day, which were held yesterday. “On behalf of the Board and Officers of the European Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgeons it is my great pleasure to welcome you to Lisbon for the XXXV Congress of the ESCRS,” said Professor David Spalton, President of the ESCRS. “Our extensive scientific programme is aimed at cataract and refractive surgeons of all levels of experience, and includes numerous expert symposia and nearly 200 instructional and surgical skills training courses.” The 2017 Binkhorst Medal Lecture will be given by Boris Malyugin MD, PhD, during the Opening Ceremony at 10.00 on Sunday morning. The title of Prof Malyugin’s lecture is “Cataract Surgery in High-Risk Eyes: Lessons Learned”.  The Opening Ceremony will also feature a special presentation to the first recipients of the Peter Barry Fellowships. The fellowships were inaugurated to mark the immense contribution of Peter Barry FRCS to European and international ophthalmology. Dr Barry, who served as ESCRS President from 2012 to 2013, died after a short illness in May 2016. Another major attraction for delegates is the Poster Village, a highly interactive area where papers are presented by the authors in an informal setting. The Poster Village has proven very popular with delegates wishing to engage in direct discussion with their colleagues, and is a key part of the scientific programme. There are a number of sessions and courses aimed specifically at young ophthalmologists, and these are highlighted in the YO track in the pocket programme. Other highlighted programme tracks are Cataract Complications & Special Cases, Cornea, Glaucoma, Laser Refractive Surgery, Presbyopia and Symposia. “With so much on offer it will be impossible to attend every session. However, if you log on to the Education Portal on the ESCRS website you can access the sessions and didactic courses on ESCRS On Demand and ESCRS iLearn, as well as discovering a wide range of video content and other materials,” said Prof Spalton.