Nov 2025 ISD-DE Newsletter

Dear Colleagues

Across the world you are part of a community of medical professionals who are interested in Dacryology, the Science and Clinical practice surrounding patients, adults and children, with lacrimal and dry eye problems. You are predominantly Oculoplastic and Lacrimal surgeons, with allied Corneal and Ocular surface specialists.

Last year in May 2024 we met in London at the XIIth Congress of the International Society of Dacryology and Dry Eye and held an innovative and collaborative meeting with over 70 speakers from across the world, including South America, Japan, Canada, India, USA, Ukraine, China, and numerous European countries. Thank you from the Executive Committee for making that possible and for your creative support for the Society through your Membership and many ideas for transforming us into a world Internationally represented Society.

Quietly in the background the voluntary involvement from the Members, Executive committee and Officers has been setting the scene for 2026 and beyond.

The last four months has seen tremendous advances with the rejuvenation and updating of the website, with new lighter fonts and colours more in keeping with the water theme, using a picture of a lily from the Tokyo emblematic Shinobazu Pond which I had the opportunity to visit whilst invited to speak at the Japanese Society of Lacrimal Passage and Tear Dynamics in July 2025. https://www.isd-de.org/

The Executive committee has agreed more favourable Membership fees for Life and Full Members, created the possibility of 20 World Region Representatives so that each region can feel and be part of the society, revising the structure and roles of the Executive Committee and its Officers, and working towards updating the Constitution. Please encourage your colleagues and trainees to become Members: https://www.isd-de.org/about/membership/

Education plays a large role in our aims, both for trainees and existing specialists interested in the Lacrimal System and the Ocular Surface. To that end we are putting together a programme of webinars consisting of basic sciences, clinical and hot topic discussions. Watch this space!

As you know, we now hold a biennial Congress and the Committee invites you to visit Tallinn in Estonia next summer for a three day meeting organised by Dr Kadi Palumaa and her team, see the programme here: See details at https://isd-de2026.eu/

NOTE: 2026 Congress Abstract closing date is 1st December for Tallin. Never mind if you miss this, as you can still attend as a delegate and enjoy long light days and Midsummer in Estonia, the Christmas of the North with many celebrations for the shortest night – or longest day.

Who we are:
https://www.isd-de.org/about/committees/

We welcome Zoran Zikic (Serbia) as Communications Officer, who has joined us on the Committee, along with the Past President Rey Javate (Philippines) who heads the Membership Advisory Committee with Hunter Yuen (Hong Kong, China), and Gangadhara Sundar (Singapore) who is leading on Education. Not least, we are grateful to the support of Santiago Ortiz Perez (Spain) and King Chow (Canada) for their wise words and actions as treasurer and Secretary respectively.

Please communicate your ideas for the Society to the Committee via info@isd-de.org and ask your local regional or country Oculoplastic Societies to recommend potential World Region Representatives.

A website and Society will not live on air and enthusiasm alone, so we are looking for Sponsors to support the Education programme, and members to join and take the Society to 2050. An exciting collaborative future exists!

Ms Jane Olver
President
25th November 2025