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Addressing medical risk factors for diabetes and understanding the new systemic treatments

As global diabetes figures continue to rise, the importance of reducing the burden of macrovascular and microvascular complications of diabetes has never been so great. By 2025 it is estimated that five million people in the UK will have diabetes...

The ‘theatre of the mind’: Charles Bonnet Syndrome and Esme’s Umbrella

The founder of Esme’s Umbrella shares her experience with the poorly understood condition Charles Bonnet Syndrome and the creation of the campaign. Many years ago, when I was a young actress, I was in an American play called ‘Butterflies are...

Diary from my elective: a Parisian experience

The author explains how a research institute’s dedication to multidisciplinary collaboration helped him to discover a passion for academic ophthalmology. The elective aspect to the final year of a medical degree, through its change of scenery and immersion into another...

Redeployment during the COVID-19 pandemic: personal accounts from four ophthalmology trainees

We once believed that the coronavirus would not penetrate the safe confines of the United Kingdom, like so many outbreaks before this. Once the news came that this pandemic descended into our hospitals, the anxieties about redeployment began. Many of...

COVID-19: Pete’s Bogus Journey

The author shares his personal experience of contracting coronavirus. I managed to body swerve COVID-19 for nine months. The Pfizer vaccine was being rolled out in my trust. I had my first inoculation booked in three weeks. I had survived...

A new observation point: updating the nomenclature and classification with OCT

The evolution of ophthalmic imaging technologies has been particularly rapid over the last few years. The author provides an update of the current terms for common signs and pathologies observed using optical coherence tomography. My experience as an ophthalmic technician,...

Sustainability in eyecare: Climate action in eyecare

Climate change will cause disruption to critical eyecare services and increases in rates of eye disease around the world. The International Agency for Prevention of Blindness has recommended 10 key areas of action on how the eyecare sector can address...

Thyroid eye disease

Thyroid eye disease (TED) is an autoimmune condition with a spectrum of signs and symptoms, usually associated with Graves’ hyperthyroidism. The diagnosis is based on history and physical examination but there are further investigations that can aid diagnosis if unclear....

Ophthalmology clinical teaching and research fellowships: a pathway into ophthalmology specialty training

Ophthalmology is known for being one of the most competitive medical specialties in the UK, with 6.8 applicants per post in 2021. In fact, the competition ratio has drastically increased in recent years, rising from 5.73 in 2020 and 3.24...

Post-stroke visual impairment: how big is the problem, how do we identify it, what we can do about it, and why does it matter?

In the UK, 100,000 new strokes occur each year, with 1.3 million stroke survivors [1]. This article will focus on post-stroke visual impairment, discussing topics of how common it is, how it can be detected, possible management options and how...

Corneal transplantation in the United Kingdom: are we blind to the challenges that still exist after the Organ Donation Bill?

Corneal transplantation (CT) is a significant treatment option for a huge number of patients in the United Kingdom (UK) [1]. For an individual, CT results in a substantial improvement in quality of life. Penetrating keratoplasty with full thickness grafting has...

My Top Five: Foundation year 3 jobs for prospective ophthalmology candidates

Ophthalmology specialist training (OST) is a fantastic career option, however, it is also a highly competitive specialty. There was a gradual rise in competition ratios in recent years: 3.24 (2019), 5.73 (2020), and 6.80 (2021) [1]. Many choose to pursue...