Speaker: Prof. Paulo Eduardo Stanga

Ophthalmologist, Vitreoretinal Surgeon
Head of The Retina Clinic London
London, United Kingdom

Prof. Stanga specializes in Medical & Surgical Retina, Macular Degeneration, Diabetic Retinopathy, Vitreous Floaters, Cataracts, Retinal Laser, R&D New Therapies, Surgical Technology, Advanced Imaging & Clinical Studies, with over 32 years of experience in Ophthalmology.
Since 1993, Prof. Stanga has also dedicated himself to the Development and Application of new outpatient & surgical therapies & technologies. He is a Principal Investigator (PI) on industry-sponsored trials & Scientific Advisor to Industry developing pharmacological/surgical therapies, diagnostic/therapeutic equipment.

Presentation Title: Cross-Sectional, 3D and Topographic Wide field Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) Imaging of the Peripheral Retina and Vitreoretinal Interface and Assessment of the status of the Posterior Cortical Vitreous

Successfully imaging the Mid and Peripheral Retina and Vitreoretinal Interface and the objective assessment of the status of the Posterior Cortical Vitreous can be considered landmark achievements as they can potentially change clinical management and reduce the number of patients suffering from retinal detachment and needing surgery, by allowing the early recognition of lesions that need treatment or increase the risk of retinal detachment. Hence the significant importance of imaging the Mid and Peripheral Retina and Vitreoretinal Interface and diagnosing Posterior Vitreous Detachment.

Speaker: Dr. Sandrine Zweifel

Ophthalmologist; Privatdozent (PD), University of Zurich
Vice Chair, Department of Ophthalmology, University Hospital Zurich
University Hospital Zurich
Zurich, Switzerland

Dr. Sandrine Zweifel is a retina specialist, vice chair and head of the medical retina and imaging unit at the Department of Ophthalmology at the University Hospital Zurich, Switzerland. As head of the medical retina unit at the Department of Ophthalmology, Dr. Zweifel is responsible for the management of the medical retina and injection clinics, cataract service of patients with retinal diseases and is involved in training of medical students and registrars in ophthalmology

Presentation Title: Feasibility and Clinical Utility of UWF OCTA

To test the diagnostic performance of a novel widefield swept source optical coherence tomography angiography (WF-OCTA) device in detecting retinal non-perfusion (np) and neovascularization (nv) in eyes with diabetic retinopathy (DR) and to compare it with the standard-of-care imaging method (ultra-widefield fluorescein angiography; UWFFA).
Non-invasive WF-OCTA offers great potential for the management of many retinal diseases including diabetic retinopathy. This new imaging modality seems to be useful in clinical daily routine to lower the number of invasive examinations. However in few cases in presence of non-perfusion areas / ischemia and neovascularization conventional FA may have to be performed.

Speaker: Dr. Richard Frederick Spaide

Ophthalmologist
Vitreous Retina Macula Consultants of New York
New York, USA

Dr. Spaide specializes in diseases of the retina and vitreous. His particular interests include retinal surgery, macular degeneration, macular holes, macular pucker, diabetic retinopathy, and intraocular inflammation. He has published more than 300 articles and 50 book chapters and 9 books about the diagnosis and treatment of retinal diseases. He has given lectures around the world.

Presentation title: Overview of Venous Overload Choroidopathy

Venous overload choroidopathy unites many seemingly disparate diseases ranging from central serous chorioretinopathy, the choroidal effects of carotid cavernous sinus fistulas, right sided heart failure, and choroidal hemangiomas to name a few. These conditions share common changes related to the effects of increased venous backpressure and the induced effects. These include choroidal thickening, dilation of choroidal veins, intervortex venous anastomoses, serous detachment of the retinal pigment epithelium, and retina. The increased venous pressure is thought to lead to venous dilation and remodeling, enlargement of anastomotic channels, increased backpressure on the choriocapillaris leading to damage and leakage. Consequences of leakage are serous detachment of the retina and retinal pigment epithelium. Loss of and damage to the choriocapillaris may contribute to atrophy and macular neovascularization. The pathophysiologic steps mirror those in chronic venous insufficiency as seen in multiple organ systems in the body. A familiar example being varicose veins of the leg, a commonly occurring manifestation of chronic venous insufficiency. In the leg there is venous dilation, enlargement of anastomotic vessels, back loading of capillaries with increased capillary leakage and damage as a consequence. The causes of venous overload in the eye can be split into extrinsic reasons such as carotid cavernous sinus fistulas and vortex vein occlusion from scleral buckles and intrinsic reason, which occur from intraocular reasons. Recognition of the pathophysiologic mechanisms involved can aid in the creation of new treatment strategies.