Annual Scientific Meeting of the European College
of Veterinary Ophthalmologists 2024

Dear friends and colleagues,

On behalf of the ECVO, we are delighted to welcome you to our annual ECVO conference being held in Amsterdam, Netherlands, May 30-June 2, 2024.

The city of Amsterdam is the capital of the Netherlands, its principal commercial and financial center, and one of Europe´s most popular cities. It is known for its historical attractions, iconic cultural scenes, and beautiful canals. The marvelous inner city is divided by its network of canals into numerous islands and contains approximately 1300 bridges and viaducts. Amsterdam is home to more than 50 museums such as the Anne Frank House. In the famous Rijksmuseum and Rembrandt house you can see works by some of the most famous Dutch painters. With no less than 400 kilometers of bicycle paths and over 600000 bicycles, Amsterdam is known to be one of the most bicycle-friendly cities in the world.

The venue of the conference is the Novotel Amsterdam City which is situated in the southern part of Amsterdam quite close to the airport. The inner city is reached in 10 minutes by public transportation with a station within walking distance from the hotel. The hotel also rents bikes, so that you can discover the inner city by bike.

After the successful hybrid meetings in 2022 and 2023, the 2024 ECVO conference will be conducted in the same format. Participants can join in person, participate virtually or sign up for a combination of both. The meeting will be streamed live, and the recordings of the meeting will be available for participants to watch until the end of August 2024.

This year’s topic of the Continuing Education (CE) day and the Masterclass (MC) is “Exotic Animal Ophthalmology”. The program was put together by the Scientific Committee under the guidance of Renata Stavinohova. Experts in exotic animal ophthalmology from Europe and the USA will share their knowledge.

The annual meeting starts on Thursday with the CE day covering the anatomical and physiological peculiarities of reptiles, avian, rabbit and other exotic animal eyes. Ophthalmic examination, husbandry and handling techniques of exotic animals will also be elaborated on. Anyone involved or interested in exotic animal ophthalmology will find these lectures of great value.

Presentations of case reports, case series, clinical and scientific research papers delivered by residents, practitioners, and researchers are scheduled all day Friday and Saturday. Prof Nilsson, University of Lund, Sweden, will give the State-of-the-Art Lecture “The Evolution of Eyes and Vision” on Saturday during the main program.

The meeting comes to an end on Sunday with the Masterclass. More advanced topics including phacoemulsification in rabbits, exotic animal ocular imaging (CT, MRI, OCT), histopathology, anesthesia, and photography will be presented and complemented by exotic animal ophthalmic case studies.

The fun, culinary and social events of the meeting include the Welcome reception on Thursday evening at the conference hotel and the Gala Dinner on Friday night. It will be held at the Lowlander Botanical Bar & Restaurant, which is situated directly at the IJ River with a breathtaking view.

While at the meeting, please take the opportunity to visit and thank the exhibitors who have generously supported our meeting and specialty throughout the years!