BLOG: Pioneers lecture to explore drivers of MGD development

It’s reportedly the leading cause of dry eye, but the factors driving the development of Meibomian gland dysfunction (MGD) remain something of a mystery.

The annual BCLA Pioneers Lecture, to be delivered this year by Associate Professor Jennifer Craig from the New Zealand National Eye Centre at the University of Auckland, will begin to solve that mystery – exploring new studies and emerging data to shed new light on the condition.

The Pioneers Lecture is the highlight of the BCLA Visionaries meeting, being held for the first time in conjunction with the Medical Ocular Surface and Contact Lens Association (MCLOSA).

Entitled ‘In the blink of an eye: exploring drivers of MGD development’ the lecture will examine a series of age and environmentally-controlled cross-sectional studies that compare the ocular surface and tear film between the South east Asian eye (where MGD is more common) and the Caucasian eye.

Differences noted in childhood, young adulthood and older age are consolidated and hypotheses regarding possible key driving factors that might be contributing to the development of MGD will be discussed.

Delegates will also be able to discuss preventative strategies that clinicians might recommend to patients, in the context of the existing evidence.

Registration is now open for the Annual BCLA Pioneers and Visionaries meeting, which will also feature the MCLOSA Kersley Lecture, to be presented by Professor Christopher Liu OBE.

Other highlights will include a session entitled ‘Contact Lenses – the side that ophthalmologists don’t see’ to be delivered by Professor Phillip Morgan and Dr Nicola Logan and chaired by Professor Sunil Shah. View the full programme here.

The event will be held on Friday, 30th November from 8:30am to 5:00pm at The Royal College of Physicians in Regent’s Park, London. The event is free for all BCLA members but online pre-registration is required. BCLA members are welcome to bring along a guest, email [email protected] for more details.