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Informed consent in ophthalmology care in the UK: A critical component of patient‑centred practice

Informed consent is a cornerstone of ethical and legal practice in healthcare, particularly in fields like ophthalmology where specialised interventions can have significant implications for a patient’s vision and quality of life. In the UK, informed consent is not merely...

Poppers retinopathy: What is it and how do we treat it?

Poppers retinopathy is a relatively unknown phenomenon which afflicts users of poppers but should be considered as a differential in sudden-onset or sub-acute visual acuity loss – particularly in patients with a history of recreational drug use. Raising awareness of...

Biometry and IOL choice errors

In the next instalment of this series I focus on problems associated with biometry and intraocular lens (IOL) selection for cataract surgery. I have taken previous medicolegal cases I have dealt with and tried to extract some learning points and...

The most frequent complaints and claims in ophthalmology – a Medical Protection Society (MPS) analysis

The authors look at the reasons behind medico-legal cases reported to MPS and share key learning points. Complications following ophthalmology surgery are rare, however, medico-legal cases are not uncommon due to the significant impact they can have on patients’ lifestyles....

The results of the last survey Feb 2020

I appreciate that I keep on reiterating it, but again we see so much practice variance. Who is right and who is wrong? Is there a right or wrong approach? And does it matter? I think it probably does matter....

The results of the last survey Feb24

Thank you to all those who participated in this edition’s survey and for those of you who attended my recent Medico-legal Seminar at the Royal College of Ophthalmologists. It was a fascinating and educational day, made a success by the...

The results of the last survey Jun24

When I was in my training and even in my early years as a consultant, I did not fully understand the difference between different lenses. When asked my preference of hydrophilic versus hydrophobic intraocular lenses (IOLs) I really did not...

A patient report of pseudoxanthoma elasticum, angioid streaks and choroidal neovascularisation

Angioid streaks (AS) on their own do not cause many problems, with the majority of patients remaining asymptomatic [1]. However, once choroidal neovascularisation (CNV) occurs, the visual prognosis of the patient rapidly declines [2]. Treatment is imperative to try and...

Trabeculectomy with erroneous Mitomycin-C concentration – a near miss

Trabeculectomy is the most commonly performed surgical procedure for glaucoma in the United Kingdom and worldwide. Modifications to the technique have been made since its introduction in 1963, perhaps the most significant being the adjunctive use of mitomycin-C (MMC), which...

Recurrent corneal erosions secondary to isotretinoin use

Isotretinoin (13–cis-retinoic acid) is the first line treatment for moderate to severe nodulocystic or papulopustular acne [1,2]. Although it is a safe medication, it has several adverse side-effects, including ophthalmic manifestations, as shown in Table 1 [3]. These side-effects need...

Diabetes macular oedema in pregnancy self-resolving postpartum

*Equally contributing co-first authors. Diabetic macular oedema (DMO) is a common clinical presentation to ophthalmology clinics. Ample evidence exists for management of DMO in non-pregnant patients. However, there is a paucity of evidence on the optimal management of DMO in...