Texas Retina’s Ashkan M. Abbey, MD, presented, taught and served as a panelist at AAO 2025, the American Academy of Ophthalmology’s annual meeting held in Orlando, Florida, October 18-20, 2025. Highlights of his leadership and involvement include the following:

  • Presented Phase 2 data from the DAVIO2 and VERONA clinical trials evaluating EYP-1901 (vorolanib intravitreal insert) for retinal exudative diseases. These studies demonstrated sustained pan-VEGF receptor inhibition, strong anatomic control, and a meaningful reduction in treatment burden for patients with neovascular age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and diabetic macular edema.
  • Delivered a symposium lecture on macular telangiectasia (MacTel) type 2, highlighting clinical integration of the newly FDA-approved encapsulated cell therapy revakinagene taroretcel-lwey/Encelto, a major advance in neuroprotective therapy for MacTel, emphasizing patient selection, safety and surgical technique. MacTel is a rare eye condition that affects the macula, causing formation of abnormal blood vessels and loss of central vision.
  • Taught an instructional course titled “Secondary IOL Techniques for Retinal Specialists” with colleagues from Wills Eye Hospital, Georgia Retina and Mid Atlantic Retina. It was Dr. Abbey’s eighth consecutive year participating in this continuing medical education (CME) course. His session, “Trocar-assisted Sutureless Intrascleral (SIS) Fixation of Intraocular Lenses” reviewed pearls from more than 1,000 SIS cases that he has performed, including trocar placement strategy, prevention of reverse pupillary block, optimization of haptic externalization, flange design, and tips to reduce intraocular lens (IOL) dislocation, hypotony (abnormally low pressure inside the eye) and haptic exposure (where part of an IOL becomes visible outside the eye).
  • Participated in the “Innovation in Retina in the ASC” panel during the Outpatient Ophthalmic Surgery Society (OOSS) Symposium,exploring advances in ambulatory retinal surgery and evolving technologies that enhance precision and efficiency in the ambulatory surgery center (ASC) environment.

“It was an honor to participate in the American Academy of Ophthalmology Annual Meeting in Orlando, where collaboration and innovation continue to redefine the standards of retinal care,” shared Dr. Abbey. “AAO 2025 was a remarkable gathering of scientific exchange, surgical education and collaboration. I’m grateful to my colleagues, co-investigators and industry partners whose commitment continues to advance sight-preserving innovation.”

Dr. Abbey serves as Texas Retina’s Director of Clinical Research for Dallas and cares for patients in our Dallas Main and Rockwall offices. You can learn more about him here.