Cancun 2017

The 4th World ROP Congress, the 4th International meeting of Retinopathy of Prematurity was held for the first time in the American continent in the beautiful city of Cancun, Mexico on August, 31st to September, 2nd, 2017 at the Ritz Carlton Hotel.

The theme of the meeting was World Action Plan for ROP: Avoidable Visual Disability

The congress had 410 participants and 90 international teachers representing 42 countries and 5 continents, which made an unforgettable congress for all present.

The opening ceremony was brilliant since the organizers of the three previous congresses were recognized, giving each one their deserved recognition for this work and for being the pillars as managers of the academic part in all the four congresses; Dr. Graham Quinn who served as master of ceremonies and Dr. Clare Gilbert as honorary president, received the awards. Later, there was a ceremony of “Mayan fire” presenting a ritual dance with pre-Hispanic instruments, which concluded with the lighting of a seashell which illuminated the congress until the closing ceremony, in which it was extinguished.

The opening video was prepared by Dr. Lizzy Perulles using fragments of a song by the famous Mexican composer Juan Gabriel that evokes all Mexican feelings with images of the country, the work with the premature children of the ROP Mexico Group and the beautiful city of Cancun, site of the congress.

Breakfasts with experts, workshops, presentations, posters, free works and discussion panels were presented according to the program accurately, with almost English punctuality. The teachers’ dinner was held in the restaurant “PORFIRIOS” with typical Yucatecan food and was given to each professor a present consisting of their birth date in Mayan calendar, as a memento of his participation. The dinner of the Congress was very pleasant, which was attended by 350 participants.

Marilyn Miller, Medical Director of the committee, presented each award with recognition. The award ceremony was attended by the “Bernadotte Foundation For Children’s Eyecare, Inc.”. See the awarded best papers and posters.

The Congress closed with a video of everything that happened in those three days, and was enlivened by fragments of Huapango by Jos Pablo Moncayo to summarize the meeting.

For more information, visit the congress website and get post conference photos & Videos

Awards

Best Papers

3 best free papers were presented and awarded by the scientific committee, where Dr. Consuelo Zepeda and Andrea Zin were in charge of this mission.

1. First place – Alejandra G. de Alba Campomanes. Thrombocytopenia as a risk factor for the development of ROP in the Postnatal Growth and ROP (G-ROP) Study.

2. Second place – Alicia Matilde Benitez. More than a decade of surveillance of retinopathy of prematurity (ROP within a National Program in Argentina)

3. Third place – David Wallace. Phase 1 dosing study of bevacizumab for ROP: plasma sVEG levels and 6 month outcomes.

Best Posters

The 3 best posters where awarded by Doctors Juan Carlos Bravo Ortiz and Pedro Acevedo

1. First place – Sam Ebenezer Athikarisamy. Days of anemia during first week of life is an independent risk factor for retinopathy of prematurity in extremely preterm infants.

2. Second place – Brian A. Darlow. Variations in screening and treatment criteria of retinopathy of prematurity among neonatal intensive care units: An international survey.

3. Third place – Umar Mian. PROPER (Pakistan ROP Research and Educational Alliance): Aims and accomplishments over 3 years.

Committees

Executive Vice President

• Luis Porfirio Orozco Gomez / Mexico

Honorary Chair

• Clare Gilbert / UK

Organization secretaries

• Stephanie Voorduin Ramos / Mexico

• Adriana Valdes Barrena / Mexico

Scientific Programme Committee

• Graham Quinn / USA

• Anna Ells / Canada

• Andrea Zin / Brazil

• Brian A. Darlow / New Zealand

• Clare Gilbert / UK

• Rajvardhan Azad / India

• Luz Consuelo Zepeda Romero /Mexico

• Luis Porfirio Orozco Gomez /Mexico

• Marco Antonio de la Fuente Torres / Mexico

• Mónica Villa Guillen / Mexico

• Leonor Hernandez Salazar /Mexico

• Maria Jovita Plascencia Ordaz /Mexico

Contacts

• Luis Porfirio Orozco Gomez / Mexico - lp.orozco@issste.gob.mx