BCLA calls for global consensus reports authors

Professor James Wolffoshn

The British Contact Lens Association (BCLA) has issued a call for expert authors to contribute to a new series of global consensus reports on contact lenses.

The Contact Lens Evidence-based Academic Reports (CLEAR) will deliver evidence-based guidance on contact lenses and the anterior eye to ensure the best possible care for patients around the world, said the Association. They will be published in the March 2021 edition of the BCLA journal, Contact Lens and Anterior Eye (CLAE), and will feature work from a panel of globally-respected experts.

It is proposed that the nine reports will set the standard that all researchers and eyecare practitioners will refer to as best practice to ensure the profession delivers the best evidence-based patient care, following in the footsteps of two similar projects in the spheres of dry eye and myopia – the TFOS DEWS II report and the IMI white papers.

CLEAR executive chair, Professor James Wolffsohn, said: “I am delighted the BCLA has supported this initiative to review the academic literature on contact lenses. This involves the top experts and will allow us to draw conclusions and to form a global consensus to support clinicians with what information is supported by evidence, researchers as to the gaps in current knowledge and to guide industry in what still needs to be achieved.”

Papers will be chaired by internationally renowned experts and will focus on the following subjects:
• Anatomy and physiology of the anterior eye: Dr Laura Downie
• Biochemistry of lens materials, coating, comfort drops and solutions: Professor Mark Willcox
• Effect of lens materials/design on the anatomy and physiology of the eye: Professor Philip Morgan
• Speciality lenses: Professor Pauline Cho and Dr Melissa Barnett
• Contact lens complications: Professor Fiona Stapleton
• Medical use of contact lenses: Associate Professor Debbie Jacobs
• Contact lens optics: Dr Kathryn Richdale
• Future applications of contact lenses: Professor Lyndon Jones
• Evidence based contact lens practice: Professor James Wolffsohn

Those who have expertise in any of the subject areas listed above, and who would like to be considered as a co-author, should email admin@bcla.org.uk for a submission form. Completed forms need to be returned by 20 December 2019.

Vice chair, Professor Philip Morgan, from the University of Manchester said: “I look forward to working with the BCLA and with colleagues from around the world to present this evidence-based and timely summary on the current state of contact lens research and practice. This special issue of the journal will provide an excellent resource for the CLAE readership and help direct future research efforts to both optimise products and improve patient care.”