On March 1st the Vitreous-Retina Symposium 2018, of BAUSCH + LOMB was held in Santander (Cantabria, Spain), as a prelude to the Congress of the Spanish Society of Retina and Vitreous (SERV).

BAUSCH + LOMB has as a fundamental mission to protect and improve the vision of millions of people around the world, and this has been proven once again by bringing together more than 200 experts in the field. The Symposium has served as an update on the evolution in recent years of the diagnosis and management of major diseases of the retina, such as retinal detachment, macular holes and diabetic retinopathy. With the aging of the population, diseases of the retina are the main cause of blindness^1,2. In fact, retinal detachment, diabetic retinopathy, age-related macular degeneration or retinitis pigmentosa are behind 67% of cases of visual impairment in Europe and affect more than 30% of the population over 50 years of age².

The coordinator of the event was Dr. Borja Corcóstegui, founder and medical director of the Ocular Microsurgery Institute (IMO). Dr. Corcóstegui stressed that this symposium, which has always dealt with issues related to new technologies, interesting cases and pathology with the aim of increasing knowledge to improve results and optimize patient care, is the oldest in the Spanish Retina and Vitreo Society Congress, now in its fourteenth edition.

Experts gathered in this forum have been able to share impressions on the current trends in the diagnostic and medical and surgical approaches to the main diseases of the retina. This year, there have been six very interesting round tables:

• Retinal detachment, with Dr. Borja Corcóstegui as moderator:
• The value of the diagnosis with OCT-A, moderated by Prof. José María Ruiz Moreno.
• What to do in refractory or recurrent macular holes, with Prof. José García-Arumí as moderator.
• Diabetic retinopathy, moderated by Dr. Juan Manuel Laborda.
• Videos of vitreoretinal surgery, with Dr. Enrique Cervera. 
• Update of new posterior segment surgical technologies, with Dr. Borja Corcóstegui as moderator.

One of the topics that generated the most interest was a presentation during a round table discussion on the new hypersonic vitreous liquefaction technology that BAUSCH + LOMB plans to launch on the market during this year. 

According to Dr. Borja Corcóstegui, "This technology is completely different to the conventional one" and stands out for:

• A higher cutoff frequency, approximately 1.7 million “virtual cuts” per minute versus 5000, 7000 or 10000 cuts per minute in current technology.
• The port is always open at 100% of the work cycle.  
• The flow is always consistent; it is continuously passing vitreous gel.

He also commented that "The opening of the port, together with the infusion pressure can cause less turbulence and lower the infusion pressure with a more controlled aspiration". The absence of an internal needle means that the diameter is greater, that it has less resistance to the flow of fluids and makes it possible to use smaller sizes in the future, which is always a possibility to work in a finer way on the retina.

Dr. Corcóstegui also clarified that this technology is now seeing the light, which means that it will have to continue to be studied, and that the surgeon will need to receive adequate training to be able to handle it safely. 

_{1- Retina Reasearch Foudation. Available at: https://retinaresearchfnd.org/about-rrf/history/}

_{2- Fundación ONCE. Available at: http://www.foal.es/es/noticias/la-población-invidente-en-el-mundo-puede-triplicarse-para-2050}