The 2021 American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery (ASCRS) in-person meeting took place this year in Las Vegas, NV. The meeting was a wonderful opportunity to see friends and colleagues after many months and was one of the first in-person ophthalmology meetings of the year.
ASCRS: Our favorite anterior segment meeting!
I have been attending ASCRS meetings since I was a first-year resident and this is my favorite anterior segment meeting to attend every year. The meeting features lectures, courses, and symposia geared not only towards seasoned ophthalmologists but also young eye surgeons.
The ASCRS meeting kicked off on Thursday with an in-person Eyecelerator meeting, a venture aimed at furthering innovation and advancement through collaboration with ophthalmology and industry to improve patient care. Friday featured informative subspeciality days: Cornea Day, Refractive Day and Glaucoma Day, which highlighted key topics and presentations in each anterior segment subspeciality area. During Refractive Day, Dr. Marguerite McDonald delivered the prestigious Steinert Refractive Lecture, highlighting the evolution and advancement of treatments and therapeutics for presbyopia.
Throughout the meeting weekend, skills transfer labs were available for eye surgeons to learn and practice complex cataract surgery as well as secondary intraocular lens implantation and endothelial keratoplasty techniques. Roundtable discussions were held with experts about topics ranging from intraocular lens calculations to keratoconus. The ASCRS taproom in the exhibit hall featured talks from top physicians about innovative technologies as well as live episodes of the new ASCRS podcast—Quicksand Chronicles—during which surgeons shared complex cases and vulnerable moments during surgery. Industry sponsors were present in the exhibit hall, leading to dynamic conversations and collaborations.
As always, the agenda at ASCRS is packed with engaging and informative sessions.
Some highlights of this year’s meeting included an opening general session honoring Dr. Terry Kim, this past year’s ASCRS president, as well as incoming ASCRS president Dr. Richard Hoffman. Dr. Richard Lewis shared thoughts on methods, diagnostics, and treatments to prevent vision loss from glaucoma during the Binkhorst Lecture. Dr. Steven Slade delivered the Charles D. Kelman MD Innovator’s Lecture, discussing how innovation is the creation of value in our field and the Winning Pitch Challenge was won by Dr. Jim Ellis MD for the JelliSee intraocular lens, a novel accommodating IOL platform. Dr. Scott Gottlieb, the former FDA commissioner, offered insights on the current state of the COVID-19 pandemic as well as lessons learned and future actions that need to be taken to keep our country safe. Lastly, the inaugural Lindstrom lecture was given by Dr. Edward Holland about his career in cornea and ocular surface disease and celebrated the wonderful career and many accomplishments of Dr. Richard Lindstrom.
Overall, the 2021 ASCRS meeting was a true success, bringing together many surgeons, trainees, industry members, and administrators in person after many months of virtual learning. We all look forward to the 2022 ASCRS meeting in Washington, DC!
Don’t forget to block April 22-26, 2022 in your calendar for next year’s meeting!
Plus, make sure to check out the exciting on-demand content and post-meeting resources available for meeting attendees.
The Eyes On Eyecare team takes advantage of a photo op with an influencer from Novartis.
