More than 2,000 ophthalmologists met in Palma from 23 to 25 September. Here is what was put on the table and, above all, what it means for patients.
The congress
The Spanish Society of Ophthalmology held its 102nd Congress from 23 to 25 September 2026 at the Palau de Congressos in Palma de Mallorca, with more than 2,000 ophthalmologists and the motto «Together we look further».
It is the annual meeting where the speciality compares notes on what works and what does not yet. It is worth covering on a clinic blog because almost everything discussed there ends up, sooner or later, in the consulting room.
Artificial intelligence, above all in glaucoma
This was one of the main threads: applying artificial intelligence to glaucoma, alongside digital monitoring and virtual perimetry.
What matters is not the «artificial intelligence» label but the problem it is trying to solve. Glaucoma advances slowly and without symptoms, and deciding whether an eye is getting worse means comparing tests months or years apart. An algorithm that spots progression before the human eye does changes the moment at which you decide to treat. The ophthalmologist still decides; the machine raises a flag.
Robotic surgery in the retina
This year's Castroviejo Lecture was devoted to the possibilities of robotic vitreoretinal surgery. These are manoeuvres in which a tremor of tenths of a millimetre matters, which is exactly where an assisted robotic arm can contribute. It is not routine practice yet, but the direction is set.
Retina and AMD
The congress reviewed retinal detachment surgery, diabetic retinopathy and new treatments for dry AMD, which for years was the form of macular degeneration with nothing to offer. That options are now being debated is the news in itself.
Refractive and cataract surgery
The joint SEO symposium with SECOIR —the implant-refractive eye surgery society— compared the techniques used today to get rid of glasses: SMILE, LASIK, PRK and ICL.
That is exactly the discussion we have in clinic every week. No technique is better in the abstract: the right one depends on the prescription, on the thickness and shape of the cornea and on age. Which is why the assessment beforehand counts for more than the name of the technique.
Glaucoma, emergencies and childhood myopia
- When to start treating glaucoma and with what: laser trabeculoplasty and minimally invasive MIGS techniques.
- Management of ocular emergencies.
- Myopia in children, which keeps rising and is one of the speciality's public health issues.
- PROMs and PREMs: measuring the outcome as the patient experiences it, not only with a letter chart.
What to take away
That ophthalmology is moving fast on technology, but decisions still rest on the same things as ever: a full examination, properly done tests, and the judgement to know when to operate and when to wait.
If it has been more than a year since your last check-up, book one: most of what was discussed in Palma only works if the disease is caught in time.
We are at 160 Carrer de Bolívia, Monday to Friday.