Eyeworld

EW MEETING REPORTER December 2011 21 October 13, 2011 Four intensive master class sessions and a welcome reception were held Thursday, Oct. 13, the day prior to the opening of the 24th annual Asia- Pacific Association of Cataract and Refractive Surgeons (APACRS) meet- ing, which was held in Seoul, South Korea, in conjunction with the an- nual meeting of the Korean Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery (KSCRS). "There is tremendous inno- vation and good basic science in re- search and clinical practice happening in Korea," said Graham Barrett, M.D., president, APACRS. Holding the APACRS annual meet- ing in Seoul provides a great oppor- tunity to increase the world's exposure to the work being done in the country, while bringing the "richness and wealth of information and experience from the rest of the Asia-Pacific region and the world to the heartland of Korea," Dr. Barrett said. "At this meeting, we will cer- tainly share our knowledge inside the Asia-Pacific region," Hungwon Tchah, M.D., president, KSCRS, said. "Perhaps more impor- tantly, we will communicate with the rest of the world, with Europe and with the Americas. We want to show the rest of the world what is going on in the region; we want to share what we have learned with the world." Master classes held APACRS master classes offered were "Pearls for Successful Femtosecond LASIK Flap Creation and Tips on Managing Unexpected Scenarios"; "Fixing IOLs in the Absence of Cap- sular Support"; "Interpretation of Topography"; and "To Maximize Ef- fect of Phakic IOL Implantation." The courses were heavily video- based, giving attendees the rare chance to closely observe the best surgeons in the region at work. The LASIK flap creation course covered the basics of femtosecond LASIK flap creation, highlighting the use of the VisuMax (500 kHz, Carl Zeiss Meditec, Jena, Germany) and IntraLase (60 and 150 kHz, Abbott Medical Optics, AMO, Santa Ana, Calif.). The course faculty, con- sisting of Cordelia Chan, M.D., Choun-Ki Joo, M.D., and Mohamad Rosman, M.D., took turns talking about the management of unexpected scenarios during flap creation, including suction breaks, sticky flaps, incomplete flaps, flap tears, small palpebral apertures, and the uncooperative patient. Ronald Yeoh, M.D., Singapore, and his colleagues, Soon-Phaik Chee, F.R.C.Ophth., and Wan-Soo Kim, M.D., presented videos show- ing attendees the proper way to manage IOL subluxations, while ex- ploring the many complexities of these situations. Damien Gatinel, M.D., Naoyuki Maeda, M.D., and Geunyoung Yoon, Ph.D., covered everything from the basics of corneal topography and optics to the interpretation of results for the screening of keratoconus and the evaluation of surgical results follow- ing refractive surgery and kerato- plasty. Phakic IOLs have been gaining popularity in the Asia-Pa- cific region, making the master class on maximizing implantation partic- ularly topical. Eung Kweon Kim, M.D., Stephen Lane, M.D., Antonio Marinho, M.D., and Kimiya Shimizu, M.D., discussed three types of phakic IOLs—iris claw (such as the Artisan and Artiflex, Ophtec, Groningen, the Netherlands), the implantable collamer lens (Visian ICL, STAAR Surgical, Monrovia, Calif.) and the angle-supported phakic IOL (Cache AcrySof, Alcon, Fort Worth, Texas). Achieving the best outcomes, they said, involves careful patient se- lection and close patient manage- ment. October 14, 2011 Recognizing achievements APACRS and KSCRS recognized out- standing ophthalmologists at the opening ceremony. APACRS be- stowed the APACRS Gold Medal on Kyung Hwan Shin, M.D., Seoul, South Korea. The "highest award" for the meeting was given to Hiroko Bissen-Miyajima, M.D., Tokyo, who presented the APACRS Lim Lecture, "My Insight on the Multifocal IOL." Displaying her warmth and a healthy dose of humor, Dr. Bissen- Miyajima began her lecture by con- trasting the common opinion of multifocal IOLs with most peoples' taste for sushi and kimchi. Most people probably like sushi and kimchi, she said, but most ophthalmologists will say they don't like multifocals; yet, paradoxi- cally, she noted that almost half of surgeons continue to implant multifocal IOLs. Initially, Dr. Bissen- Miyajima was skeptical of multifo- cals; her opinion underwent a radical transformation following an unusual experience with a patient who was in a unique position to compare monofocals and multifo- cals. Despite some qualms regarding nighttime glare and halos, the pa- Reporting live from the Asia-Pacific Association of Cataract & Refractive Surgeons meeting, Seoul, South Korea Editors' note: This Meeting Reporter contains original reporting by the EyeWorld news team from the 2011 APACRS meeting, Seoul, South Korea. Professor Hungwon Tchah, president of KSCRS, welcomes attendees to the 24th APACRS meeting in Seoul continued on page 22

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