Irish College of Ophthalmologists Winter Meeting 2025 Focuses on Advances in Neuro-ophthalmology
Friday, November 21st, 2025
The Irish College of Ophthalmologists (ICO) annual Winter Meeting was convened on the afternoon of Friday, 21st November, at the Albert Theatre in the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland.
The session was dedicated to the subspecialty of Neuro-ophthalmology, featuring a distinguished panel of experts from both Ireland and the United Kingdom. Consultant Neuro-ophthalmologists, Ms. Lisa McAnena Beaumont Hospital and Mater Misericordiae University Hospital, and Ms. Áine Ní Mhéalóid, Royal Victoria Eye and Ear Hospital, co-chaired the event.
Dr Tasanee Braithwaite, Consultant Ophthalmologist in Neuro-ophthalmology and Uveitis at the Medical Eye Unit, Guy’s and St Thomas’ Hospital in London, opened the session with a presentation on Optic Neuritis, the inflammation of the optic nerve. Dr Braithwaite provided an overview of the diagnosis and management of the condition, and an update on research into optic neuritis epidemiology, association with systemic and neurologic diseases, the potential for genetic risk scores to enhance disease prediction, and consideration of health economic and health system factors on clinical practice patterns and patient outcomes. Dr Braithwaite takes a particular interest in the holistic care of patients who have vision problems and eye symptoms resulting from autoimmune, autoinflammatory, infectious and neuro-ophthalmic diseases, and manages patients requiring systemic therapy including immunosuppression and biologic therapy.
Miss Ruchika Batra, Consultant Neuro-ophthalmologist at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham, gave her talk on An Approach to Optic Neuropathies. As a member of the skull base and pituitary teams at the unit, Miss Batra believes in multidisciplinary care and has a passion for lifestyle medicine and the holistic care of both patients and colleagues, reflected by her role as Well-being Lead for the West Midlands Ophthalmology Training Programme. She is also the Training Programme Director for Medical Ophthalmology and College Tutor for the Queen Elizabeth Hospital.
Dr Patrick Nicholson, Consultant Neuro-Interventional Radiologist at Beaumont Hospital and Beacon Hospital discussed Neuro-imaging of the Optic Pathway. Dr Nicholson works as part of a research group focusing on emerging applications of neuro-interventional techniques and has a special interest in endovascular treatment of neurovascular diseases, robotic endovascular surgery and investigation and treatment of disorders of CSF circulation (including CSF leaks/SIH and idiopathic intracranial hypertension (IIH).
Ms Lisa McAnena’s talk on Ocular Imaging and Electrophysiology addressed the various ocular imaging and electrodiagnostic modalities available to us in the ophthalmology clinic and their respective applications in neuro-ophthalmic conditions.
The speakers at the winter meeting also participated in a dedicated Neuro-ophthalmology course for ICO trainees, which took place the day before, Thursday, 20th November, in the RCSI. They were joined by co-presenters Dr Duncan Rogers (Evaluating the Patient with Vision Loss), Dr Kish Mankad, Consultant Paediatric Neuroradiologist and the Clinical Lead for Paediatric Neuroradiology at Great Ormond Street Hospital, and Dr Christine Bourke, who gave a joint presentation on Special Considerations in Paediatric Neuro-ophthalmology, and Ms Áine Ní Mhéalóid (Papilloedema).
Annual Montgomery Lecture 2025
The Annual Montgomery Lecture, hosted by the ICO, took place at the same venue that evening. The lecture entitled ‘Journey of an Accidental Academic’ was delivered by Professor Anthony King, Consultant Ophthalmologist at Nottingham University Hospital, NHS Trust whose primary research interest is in the clinical management of glaucoma, focusing particularly on advanced glaucoma and patient-centered delivery of care.
In his lecture, Professor King discussed the importance of definitions when reporting outcomes of glaucoma trials and the management of patients presenting with advanced glaucoma. His talk charted his experience along the pathway from a rookie researcher to a randomised controlled trial (RCT), discussing the realities of undertaking research, while strongly encouraging young ophthalmologists to embark on this journey.
Professor King is currently the Chief Investigator of the NIHR funded Treatment of Advanced Glaucoma Study (TAGS). He is a past President of the UK and Eire Glaucoma Society and previously served as the Royal College of Ophthalmologist glaucoma lead for the development of a national ophthalmic database for trabeculectomy.
