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Aug/Sep 2017 Quiz

History A seven-year-old atopic boy has been treated for phlyctenulosis with mild topical steroids. However, he developed dramatic changes at the right limbus in two weeks. He also had past history of vernal keratoconjunctivitis (VKC) with poor compliance to treatment....

Apr/May 2017 Quiz

History A five-month-old baby was seen in clinic with bilateral congenital corneal opacities. The right cornea is shown in Figure 1. Figure 1. Examination revealed corneal oedema and opacities of Descemet’s membrane and endothelium with a few vesicular lesions. Corneal...

Oct/Nov 2016 Quiz

History A 67-year-old female patient had chronic left canaliculitis becoming painful and more recently complicated by left lower blepharitis. Examination revealed a small fleshy lump on the medial aspect of the left lower eyelid. There was also swelling of the...

Feb/Mar 2017 Quiz

History A 40-year-old male patient presented with a right lower eyelid swelling with gradual enlargement for two months. On examination there was a large lesion apparently involving lid margin, part of palpebral conjunctiva and skin. No other local or systemic...

Aug/Sep 2015 Quiz 2

History A two-year-old female child presented with loss of vision in her left eye. Examination showed leukocoria and intraocular calcification was identified on scanning. The suspected diagnosis was intraocular retinoblastoma and the child underwent an enucleation. The eyeball was submitted...

Aug/Sep 2014 Quiz 1

History A 50-year-old female with a history of smoking, weight loss and cough presents to the ophthalmology clinic with a distorted pupil. Examination reveals a mass on the surface and within the iris (see Figure 1). The ophthalmologists decide to...

Specialty doctor interviews

I started my training as an ophthalmologist in the Wild West of Carmarthenshire where I did my first laser procedure, first phacoemulsification and first slit-lamp examination. All of these firsts were done under the tutelage of very skilled staff grade...

Jury duty

Until a few years ago doctors were exempt from jury duty. I am glad that this exemption was lifted as the stint I did at the crown court in Swansea recently was one of the most illuminating two weeks I...

Handover of power

Election time comes every five years in the United Kingdom. It is usually a time of excitement and trepidation as people wonder what will change, for whom and over how long, depending on which party might win power. Usually it...

Les Misérables

I recently had the signal pleasure of undergoing Part 2 of the FRCOphth exit exam and could not help but wonder at how examiners could on the whole be easily categorised into certain subtypes which readers may find fascinating. This...

The only thing to fear is fear itself

There is a song by the Amateur Transplants called ‘Finals Fantasy’ which describes in humorous detail how stressful clinical exams can be. Having not done any viva or objectively structured clinical examination (OSCE) style exams for many years indeed I...