Presenter: Lindner Petra

Many white findings in the retina are hard to analyze and define.

In an interactive workshop the participants will learn, how Scanning Laser Technology with IR (785nm) and Green (532nm) laser helps to make the right decision.

The two laser show different layers of the retina and present sharp images. Knowing the anatomy of the retina the participants will be able to describe where the finding is, and what it looks like. They will learn about differential diagnoses and get hints and help on how to decide about their accurate decision.

What is the characteristic of a choroidal nevus compared to soft drusen? How can you distinguish between cotton wool spots and myelinated nerve fibers? What is the difference between a „Bergmeisterpapilla“and an atrophic area around the optic nerve head? These and many more examples of white findings in the retina will be discussed.

After talking about the finding and its origin, we will then discuss further recommendations and conclusions for the participants as Optometrists. Does the customer have to see an Ophthalmologist – and if so: how quick do you have to refer your customer?

Presenter: Gustav Poltner

How to adapt quickly and safely to the correct Ortho-Keratology lens? Lists and form papers are out and calculating and simulating the right contact lens has become relatively easy, with the support of computer software. However, it gets interesting, if the customer starts with it and if not everything is as great as expected. So what?

This workshop will focus on the fitting methods and the troubleshooting so that you can quickly get a good result.

Especially with the myopia control, it is important to learn the right way to deal with the children, so that they are motivated to really wear this type of contact lenses.

Presenter: Dietze Holgar

In this workshop, you will be introduced to the principles of fundus camera image interpretation of normal and abnormal eyes. You will learn common signs and variants of the normal and abnormal fundus as well as common techniques and abbreviations for the corresponding record keeping. In the hands-on part, a series of fundus images with normal or abnormal conditions will be shown for discussion and exercise.

Presenter: Shweizer Helmer

There are some fundamental differences between the contact lens (CL) and the spectacle (SPEC) business.
For most eye care professionals (ECPs) in Europe, their main business (turnover) is in SPECs.
It is thus no surprise that they treat the CL business similar to the SPEC one and do not consider the differences.

One aspect in which the businesses are different is the capital needed to be invested into stock.

Another one is the time spend to serve a customer. Next comes the repurchase frequency, the add on sales, the customer loyalty etc. This presentation looks at all these aspect, some in more detail.

Overall, CLs can be a good business and most likely, the combined one is the best. In the end, it does not matter how much money is made by one transaction with one customer, at one time it is about the life cycle value and the opportunity to satisfy all the vision correction solutions a patient may benefit from.

The services provided around the fitting and the after-care of contact lenses, should be properly charged for and thus enhance the CL business performance.

Presenter:  Mellisa Vitek
Facilitator: Janice Scharre 

While most healthcare providers embrace the belief that evidence-based clinical decision-making leads to better patient outcomes, many, including optometrists, provide healthcare that lags behind the current scientific literature. Optometrists often have difficulty finding, appraising and/or applying current best evidence. Participants in this hands-on workshop will work in small groups. A specific patient scenario will be provided and each group will be asked to formulate and categorize an answerable clinical question. Groups will then search the literature and share with the large group their search experiences. A specific article will then be provided to each group and they will work through the critical appraisal of that article. Critical appraisal results will be shared with the large group for discussion. The small groups will then apply the results of that article to the patient scenario. Finally, the small groups will, once again, share their work with the large group for discussion.

Presenter: Jonathan Shapiro

The bone structure of the face and skull affects the positioning of the orbit of the eye.
An asymmetric positioning of the orbits affects the platform on which the binocular system is established. As the skull develops, throughout life, this platform is changing.
This directly affects the binocular balance and the ability to integrate the visual pathways in the cortex. Treatment of imbalances by traditional methods may not be appropriate.
The workshop presents the case for understanding facial and skull structure.
Patients will be presented, with variations in facial and skull structures, to demonstrate the effect on the binocular vision. The workshop will present methods of examination and suggest treatments. The participants will be encouraged to perform an examination and suggest how they would treat the problems found.

This presentation will help practitioners and dispensing opticians handle the cases with the contact lens wearers. Practitioners who do not regularly fit contact lenses are often convinced that it is too complicated and too much time needed for a proper fit. It is true that according to a study by the University of Waterloo (Canada) in 2013, the discontinuation rate of contact lens wearers is between 26 and 40%. Not having the lenses fit, you also lost the other 60% of the others that are willing to wear contacts.

Through the practical solutions and tricks the lecture will help practitioners to demonstrate an understanding of the options, choices and management of the adaptation issues of contact lenses. Every practitioner has an individual that claims contact lens insertion is impossible or can not be handled. The intolerances, clumsy fingers and being afraid of touching the surface of the eyes, are often heard in the practice. Aa a practitioner you need to make it work, because the client decides to choose you because they think you are professional and trustworthy. Successful rate of contact lens wearing depends on various factors: motivation, effort put in the learning and adapting, hygiene, obedience and visual expectations. Discomfort and dryness are nowadays the initial reason for stopping or reducing the usage of contact lenses. Learning objectives of this lecture will try to improve the communication with contact lens patients from initial fitting onwards to ensure that they understand the benefits and limitations of different lens types so ensure compliance and retention of wearers. The consultation and the dialogue between the practitioner and patient has a few important goals:

• To establish if a candidate is suitable for CL correction
• To identify the optimal CL correction
• To discuss reasonable expectations of the visual performance
• To educate a patient about the safety and the care system
• To discuss the aftercare and the importance of the follow-ups

The prescription of progressive lenses requires a very acurate mesurement of certain parameters on wearers face. If f one of those parameters is taken incorectly, it can have a huge effect on adaptation time of a wearer. Therefore it is realy important to be able to tak ethose mesurements correctly and acuratley, even if more then one person is empoyed int he practice. This workshop will be focused on one or more ways of taking mesurements so everyone can be sure to take correct mesurement every time. First part of workshop will be theoretical and second one will be practical with people taking mesures themselves.

The presentation is about multifocal fittings and how to succeed by picking the ideal type of customer, distinguishing between presbyopia patients who are suitable and patients who are not very suitable for multifocal contact lenses. When comes to the fitting process a study conducted in Danish Contact Lens Institute demonstrates the importance of examining for the dominant eye (motoric/sensoric) and to apply the proper use of “flippers.” The presentation also touches on aspects of patient communication that may help securing a successful multifocal fitting.

The advantage of the Scheimpflug principle over conventional topography systems is the additional detection of the posterior surface of the cornea. This allows the investigator to detect early ectasias. Furthermore, scans of the entire anterior segment of the eye including anterior chamber and lens can be taken enabeling the examiner to screen for narrow angle glaucoma and cataract. Participants will practice Scheimpflug scans and learn how to look for ectasia by means of the Belin-Ambrósio module. Additionally, we will use the Fast Screening Report to detect changes in corneal topography, pachymetry and anterior chamber configuration.