2024 IEOC/an-vision Equine Ophthalmology Symposium

USA Location - Nashville, TN, USA
June 13-15, 2024

We are excited to announce that we have signed the contract for the 2024 IEOC Symposium! It will take place in Nashville, Tennessee, United States at the DoubleTree by Hilton Nashville Downtown. The sound of Nashville reverberates from the city’s downtown core where honky tonks play world-class live music 365 days a year, historic buildings have been reimagined into music attractions, boutique hotels, art galleries, chef-driven restaurants, and newly constructed hotels, eateries, music venues, and attractions pop up all over.

General information: This is a fun, intimate meeting filled with many opportunities to share ideas, treatments and topics that are relevant today. Diversity abound, about ½ of the attendees are from the EU, Australia and the East the rest typically attend from Canada and the US. If you haven’t attended the symposium in the past, this is a must-try for equine practitioners! All attendees become members, and members always receive a ‘meeting pearls’ summary and complimentary proceedings of the meeting the week following the event. 

Registration is now open for IEOC Members

Attendees must be current members of the IEOC to attend the Symposium, non-members will not be approved to attend. To register as a member, make sure your dues are current, or contact the IEOC office if you are unsure. To submit as a new or lapsed member, a membership application must be received no later than May 24th to be considered for approval. Once submitted allow for up to 48 hours for approval, note that registration will close May 31st. Walk-up registration will not be allowed for non-members or those who have not yet received pre-approval of membership. Please be careful of these dates and requirements, they are new for 2024. 

IEOC Current Members, Registration form

Applicants for Membership, Application form (due no later than May 24th)

Call for papers closed February 29th

Thank you to those who submitted an abstract for consideration. The planning committee will be reviewing these shortly and providing feedback to the submitters over the next few weeks. Speakers should be notified no later than April 15th. 

Program Schedule 

All but four hours of the presentations will be based upon the abstract submissions, the schedule will be published by May 1st. Our State of the Art Speakers will be presenting four total hours of the content. A typical schedule is as follows:

Thursday
6-8pm               Registration & Welcome Reception (with vendors)

Friday
7:30-8:30am      Breakfast provided (plated with vendors)
8:30-Noon         Two hours State of the Art Speaker; abstracts/case reports, Q/A
Noon-1pm         Lunch provided (plated with vendors)
1:00-4:00pm      Abstracts/Case Reports/Q&A
4:00-5:00pm      Can vary...panel discussions, round tables (TBA in May)
6:00-(TBA)         Optional Friday offsite dinner/event function (most years, TBA by April)

Saturday
7:30-8:30am      Breakfast provided (plated with vendors)
8:30-Noon          Two hours State of the Art Speaker; abstracts/case reports, Q/A
Noon-1pm          Lunch provided (plated with vendors)
1:00-3:30pm       Abstracts/Case Reports/Q&A
3:30-4:30pm       Can vary...panel discussions, round tables (TBA in May)
4:30-5:00/30pm  IEOC Business Meeting typically held (to be finalized in May)
5:30pm               Typical end of meeting time

(Final schedule will be provided by May 1st, if not earlier.)

State of the Art Speakers

Nikki Scherrer

Dr. Nikki Scherrer

Innovations in Equine Corneal Treatment

This presentation will focus on diagnostic and treatment modalities used to treat the most common equine corneal diseases: ulcerative keratitis, immune mediated keratitis, stromal abscess, and corneal neoplasia.

Dr. Nikki Scherrer, DVM, currently serves as Associate Professor of Ophthalmology at University of Pennsylvania’s New Bolton Center in Kennett Square, Pennsylvania. Dr. Scherrer received a bachelor’s degree at DePauw University in Greencastle, IN and attended Purdue University for her doctorate in veterinary medicine. After graduation she started an internship at Rood and Riddle Equine Hospital and then a second rotating internship at University of Pennsylvania’s New Bolton Center. This experience opened the door into an ophthalmology residency at New Bolton Center. She became a Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Ophthalmologists in 2019 and was hired on as faculty soon after.

Dr. Bina Patel

What’s that white spot?? Identifying, diagnosing, and treating corneal ulcers. 

A Deeper Dive into Fungal Keratitis

Dr. Bina Patel is an Assistant Professor at Vanderbilt Eye Institute and staff ophthalmologist at the Tennessee Valley Veterans Affairs.  She completed her medical school, residency, and fellowship in cornea and anterior segment at the University of Virginia.  She has been in practice for over 10 years.  Her current interest is in resident education where she spends most of her time teaching residents in clinic and during surgery.  She is past president of Nashville Association of Ophthalmology and currently serves as the Site Director at the VA. 

Host Hotel Information

DoubleTree Hotel by Hilton, Nashville Downtown

IEOC negotiates a hotel block with a lower rate for our attendees. Please reserve your rooms as soon as possible. If we run out we will be better positioned to negotiate for an addendum to add on rooms if this occurs earlier. If rooms are added it is likely the rate will be higher. The block will close by May 15th, but could run out of rooms earlier. 

DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Nashville Downtown
315 4th Avenue North
Nashville, TN 37219-1693

Group Rate & Code
Rate: $239USD 2 Queen / 1 King
Check In: 4:00pm   Check Out: 11:00am
Guest Room Block Cut-Off Date: Wednesday, May 15th, at 5:00pm Central Time (CT)
Group Name: International Equine Ophthalmology Symposium
Group Code: 929 **Code to use if calling in
Reservation: 1-800-222-8733
Group Reservation online link

Thank you Sponsors

A special thank you to our name-sake sponsor, an-vision, for again agreeing to sponsor the Symposium! IEOC is grateful that this company has supported this event for over 10 years now. Be sure to visit their booth on-site. Thank you!

Thank you to our Welcome Reception sponsor, Epicur! We appreciate your support. Visit Epicur at their booth on-site. 

Anonymous IEOC-Member Sponsor - Trainee Presentations 
THANK YOU for continuing to support our trainees by providing the financial award to encourage them to participate and present at the Symposium. The awards this year will be $1,500 for first place, $1,000 for second place, and $750 for third. We SO appreciate your support. 

Exhibiting Opportunities

Exhibition space is limited for this intimate meeting. As of late February, all vendor spaces have been filled. Please contact our office if you wish to be placed on a wait list. Booths are a table-top format, with 1-2 vendors attending per booth. Fee is $850 and includes 2.5 days of contact time, welcome reception food/drinks, and four seated/plated meals per vendor individual. 

Thank you IEOC/an-vision Exhibitors!

an-vision, Inc. (namesake sponsor)
Crestpoint Ophthalmics
Epicur Pharma (welcome reception sponsor)
iCare TONOVET
Meds for Vets
Optomed US
Vetrix