Important Notice: As the majority of participants have chosen the online registration option, and considering the current situation, we have decided that the course will be conducted online only.
Optical Coherence Tomography Basics and Clinical Applications
Advanced Educational Program
This advanced course offers structured, high-level training in Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) and OCT Angiography (OCT-A), focusing on clinically relevant interpretation and application across a broad range of ophthalmic subspecialties. The program combines theoretical instruction with extensive clinical case discussion to ensure practical competence and consistency in OCT-based decision-making.
The curriculum encompasses anterior and posterior segment imaging, glaucoma, neuro-ophthalmology, and ocular oncology, with emphasis on standardized interpretation, recognition of artifacts, and longitudinal patient assessment. Teaching is delivered by experienced faculty with a strong focus on clinical relevance and evidence-based practice.
Educational Content
Principles of OCT and OCT-A imaging
Posterior segment diseases, including retinal, choroidal, inflammatory, vascular, and hereditary disorders
Glaucoma and optic nerve head evaluation
Neuro-ophthalmic applications of OCT
Anterior segment OCT of the cornea, conjunctiva, and anterior chamber
Ocular oncology imaging and follow-up
Case-based interpretation and clinical integration
Educational Objectives
Upon completion of the course, participants will be able to:
Apply advanced OCT and OCT-A interpretation in routine and complex clinical scenarios
Recognize artifacts and technical limitations affecting diagnostic accuracy
Integrate OCT findings into longitudinal patient management
Utilize OCT in multidisciplinary and subspecialty contexts, including ocular oncology
Target Audience
This advanced course is designed for ophthalmology specialists and residents with at least three years of residency training and is suitable for continuing medical education and professional development programs.
A very successful first course at 2025:
Our inaugural course, held in 2025 at the Yasuragi Hotel and Spa in Stockholm, marked a significant milestone for our program.
The course brought together an exceptional and deliberately diverse faculty and audience, including professors, associate professors, PhD candidates, consultant ophthalmologists, senior residents with a minimum of four years’ experience, and specialists from outside ophthalmology, including a neurologist. This broad range of expertise and perspectives created a uniquely rich learning environment.
Despite—and indeed because of—this challenging mix of experience levels and clinical interests, the course received outstanding feedback. One hundred percent of participants reported that they would recommend the course to colleagues at a similar level, and one hundred percent stated that the course had a high or very high impact on their daily clinical practice.
We were both humbled and encouraged by this response, and it directly inspired us to plan and develop the next course in the series.
Clarion Hotel Post – Gothenburg Sweden
Travel Information for International Attendees
The course takes place in Gothenburg, Sweden, a well-connected city that is easy to reach from abroad.
Arrival by Air
If you are flying to Gothenburg, you will arrive at Göteborg Landvetter Airport.
The airport’s international code (IATA symbol) is GOT.
The airport is modern, clearly signposted in English, and easy to navigate for international travelers.
Airport Transfer to the City
Getting from the airport to central Gothenburg is simple and reliable. Direct airport coaches operated by Flygbussarna run frequently between the airport and the city center.
Coaches depart directly outside the arrivals terminal
Final stop: Gothenburg Central Station (Centralstationen)
Travel time: approximately 20–30 minutes
Tickets are available online, via mobile app (vy bussarna), or at the airport
Information and schedules are provided in English
Tickets and details can be found here:
https://www.flygbussarna.se
Getting to the Central Station
The airport coach stops at Gothenburg Central Station (Vy flygbussarna Nils Ericson terminal), which is directly next to Clarion Hotel Post. The hotel is only a short walk from the bus stop, making the transfer very easy even if you are unfamiliar with the city.
Central Location of the Clarion Hotel Post
Clarion Hotel Post is located in the heart of Gothenburg, making it an ideal base for international visitors:
*Directly adjacent to the main train station
*Easily reachable by tram, bus, taxi, or on foot
*Excellent connections to all parts of the city
*Surrounded by restaurants, cafés, shops, and services
Whether you arrive by plane, train, or local public transport, reaching the hotel is straightforward and stress-free.
Booking a reservation
To make a reservation at the hotel use this link below
https://www.strawberryhotels.com
In the field I want to travel to, write Clarion Hotel post ”Gothenburg” Add the course discount code to get 15% ”SDOC15” as shown in the photo below.
For the dinner on 26 May, please inform the hotel in advance if you have any special dietary requirements.
Abbas Al-Hawasi - Course director
*M.B.Ch.B. , MD, FEBO , Ph.D. *Senior Consultant Ophthalmologist, *CEO of the Swedish Digital Ophthalmology Center, *Expert at the Swedish TLV (equivalent to American FDA and European EMA). *Expert medical adviser to the Swedish public healthcare patient insurance. *Examiner at the EBOD (European Board of ophthalmology). *Lecturer at different Swedish Universities and programs (Residents, medical college, Master nursery, Optometry and Master Optometry). Research field: OCT, pediatric ophthalmology, Neuro-ophthalmology. *As an active researcher and clinically active physician, he has participated in and contributed to a number of research projects in ophthalmology. His thesis focused on optical coherence tomography (OCT) and its applications to analyse both physiological and pathological changes in the eye and brain. His work has contributed to a deeper understanding of how OCT can be used in diagnostics and treatment. *With his expertise in OCT, he is a clinical specialist in the field and a sought-after speaker at national and international conferences. He continues to be a driving force in research, teaching and clinical work to improve diagnostics and treatment strategies in ophthalmology.
Steffen Hamann - Professor
MD, PHD, FEBO, FRCOPHTH. Professor, Department of Clinical Medicine, University of Copenhagen, Denmark, Consultant Neuro-Ophthalmologist, Department of Ophthalmology, Rigshospitalet, Denmark, Visiting Professor, Rothschild Foundation Hospital, Paris, France Steffen. Hamann’s research interests center around compressive, inflammatory, and ischemic diseases of the afferent visual pathways. In particular, the focus is on the pathology of elevated intracranial pressure states, ischemic and inflammatory optic neuropathies, and optic disc drusen. In addition, his group is aiming at advancing the use of retinal and optic nerve imaging modalities, especially OCT, and incorporating artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms, to detect, identify, and predict neurological disease based on ocular imaging. He has published more than 140 peer-reviewed, scientific papers. Dr. Hamann is head of the Visual Pathways Research Center (VIPER). In 2015 Dr. Hamann founded the international Optic Disc Drusen Studies (ODDS) Consortium of which he is Chair. The consortium consists of highly dedicated optic nerve researchers from 15 different countries and 4 continents. Dr. Hamann is also chairman for neuro-ophthalmology of the European Reference Networks for Rare Eye Diseases.
Helena Prior Filipi - Consultant Ophthalmologist
MD, MMEd, FSACME, FAMEE, CPC (HC), FEACL Consultant of Ophthalmology in the Department of Ocular Surface and Cornea at Hospital of Egas Moniz, West Lisbon Hospitals Center, Portuguese (NHS) where she is currently responsible for the Unit of Cornea and TissuesTransplantation. Researcher at the Egas Moniz Center for Interdisciplinary Research (CiiEM). Helena has developed a particular interest in Ocular Surface and Cornea, Cataract Surgery, and Ultrasound Examination. She has published in peer-reviewed ophthalmology journals. Involved in Continuing Professional Development (CPD) with a particular interest in underserved communities and online education, expanding the fields of simulation-based training, communities of practice and mentorship. Helena has been serving in leadership positions, at several international and global professional organizations within their educational projects. She has engaged in building with other international expert educators, online and onsite ophthalmology training, and faculty education programs. . Helena has post-graduations in Continuing Professional Development from the Association for Medical Education in Europe (AMEE) and the University of Toronto and received the designation of Certified Professional in Continuing Professional Development (Healthcare) by the Leadership Team of the Coalition on Physician Learning and Practice Improvement. She is a Fellow of AMEE, a Fellow of SACME, and a Fellow of the European Academy of Clinical Leadership.
Tunde Peto - Professor
Professor of Clinical Ophthalmology at QUB, Clinical Lead of the Northern Ireland Diabetic Retinopathy (DR) Screening Programme and a Consultant Ophthalmologist in Medical Retina. She specialises in chronic blinding diseases, ophthalmic image analysis, epidemiology and statistics and is internationally renowned for setting up and managing diabetic retinopathy screening and training programmes. As Head of the Belfast Ophthalmic Reading Centre and Director of The Central Administrative Research Facility (CARF), a unique facility coordinating the grading of ophthalmic images collected for clinical research studies, Professor Peto has expertise in overseeing a wide range of studies, including age-related macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy and population-based studies. Professor Tunde Peto trained in Hungary and Australia and spent 15 years at Moorfields Eye Hospital in London before taking up her current position in Belfast. She was recently named among the UK’s most influential researchers who study diabetes complications.
Arash Gharehbaghi - Associate professor
He received an M.Sc. in Biomedical Engineering from Amirkabir University of Technology (Tehran Polytechnic) and an advanced M.Sc. in Telemedicine from the University of Mons, Belgium, in 2010. His research focuses on the application of machine learning to medical signal and image analysis. He completed his Ph.D. in Biomedical Engineering at Linköping University in 2014 and subsequently held postdoctoral and research fellow positions at Mälardalen University for six years. His work during this period addressed advanced machine learning methodologies, including the development of the Deep Time Growing Neural Network for medical applications. In 2021, he was awarded the Docent degree in Biomedical Engineering by Linköping University. He is the inventor of several international patents and the author of Deep Learning in Time Series Analysis (CRC Press, 2023).
Pierfransesco Mirabelli - Consultant ophthalmologist
MD, PhD Pierfrancesco Mirabelli has a 25 years experience in Ophthalmology with special focus on uveitis and retina. He obtained his Medical Degree at Rome´s University La Sapienza where he started attending the department of Ophthalmology both as a student and as a graduate, and his Specialist Degree in Ophthalmology at the University of Padua, Italy, a tertiary referral centre for medical retina and uveitis, where he started subspecializing in these areas. He obtained his PhD at the University of Linköping with a thesis on inflammatory angiogenesis in ophthalmology. At the department of Ophthalmology of Linköping he served as Responsible for the uveitis section since 2008, and medical retina since 2015. Since 2017 Pierfrancesco Mirabelli works as the Medical Director of the Department of Ophthalmology in Östergötland. He has been involved in several national committees by initiative of the Swedish Association of Local Authorities and Regions (SKR) and the National Board of Health and Welfare (Socialstyrelsen) producing swedish national guidelines in different areas of Ophthalmology. He teaches retina and uveitis in several courses for residents as well as for opthalmologists (ST-kurs Retina, ST-kurs Uvea, ST-kurs Endokrin) besides a long experience in teaching medical students.
Gabriella De Salvo - - Consultant ophthalmologist
Senior Consultant Ophthalmologist at University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust since 2013. Senior lecturer at the University of Southampton, Southampton, United Kingdom. Dr De Salvo trained in ophthalmology in Italy where she won two scholarships to further study at the Wills Eye Hospital in the USA and at the University Hospital in Vienna, Austria. She obtained a fellowship in medical retina at Moorfields Eye Hospital, United Kingdom. Dr De Salvo specialises in the diagnosis and management of medical retinal diseases. As an active researcher, she is involved in numerous clinical trials, is retina section editor in peer reviewed journals such as ’Eye’ and ’British Medical Journal Open Ophthalmology’, and is a recognised reviewer for the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR). She is an active member of the Royal College of Ophthalmologists, the European Retina Society (Euretina) and the Italian Society of Ophthalmic Sciences (SISO). She is a recipient of a research and clinical grant from the Italian Ministry of University and Scientific Research and of a few clinical excellence awards.
Markus Karllson - Consultat Ophthalmologist
Began his medical career at the Ophthalmology Clinic at Linköping University Hospital, where he was appointed Senior Consultant in 2013. During 2016–2017, he served as the Medical Director at the ophthalmology clinic in Eksjö, followed by a position as Senior Consultant at A6 Eye Clinic in Jönköping. In 2020, he established Tranås Eye Clinic, which has been part of Bergman Clinics’ ophthalmology network since 2023. Dr. Karlsson is also an adjunct lecturer at Linköping University and frequently lectures on glaucoma at ophthalmology clinics both in Sweden and internationally. Education Dr. Karlsson completed his medical training at the Faculty of Health Sciences, Linköping University. He completed both his internship (AT) and ophthalmology specialist training at the Ophthalmology Clinic at Linköping University Hospital. Alongside his specialist training, Dr. Karlsson pursued a Ph.D. at the Department of Medical and Health Sciences (IKE) at Linköping University. In 2014, he defended his dissertation, titled: ”Oxidative stress-related damage of retinal pigment epithelial cells – possible protective properties of autophagocytosed iron-binding proteins.” Associations and Memberships Swedish Medical Association Board member, Swedish Glaucoma Association Representative in the National Glaucoma Working Group Member of the European Glaucoma Society
Grants and discounts
Grants
As part of our mission to promote teaching and excellence in ophthalmology, we award four sponsored places each year. Two places are reserved for candidates from countries outside the European Union, and two places are granted to the candidates who achieved the highest scores in the spring and autumn sittings of the EBOD examination. Candidates selected through the EBOD examination will receive separate information regarding the grant directly from the Executive Board of EBOD.
Discounts
For institutions interested in group reservations please contact us at edu@sdoc.se
OBSERVE! Only online registration is possible
Please read the Terms and Conditions below carefully before applying for the course.
Ensure that you contact your department to obtain the correct invoicing details, including the VAT number, if applicable.
When making payment, always state your full name and hospital/city exactly as provided in your application.
Payment methods:
Participants residing in Sweden may pay using: Payment methods:
Invoice (faktura), or
Swish to “123 444 94 50”
International participants pay via bank transfer to the bank account specified below:
S.D.O.C. Consulting AB
Organization number: 559310-3590
IBAN: SE40 8000 0848 0673 4664 2130
BIC: SWEDSESS
VAT number: SE559310359001
Course Fees and Pricing
All prices are stated in Swedish kronor (SEK).
Online participation:
SEK 10,800 excluding VAT
SEK 13,500 including VAT
VAT is applied in accordance with applicable Swedish tax legislation.
What is included:
Access to the course lectures/Material
Terms and conditions - summary
Registration and Commitment
When you register for the course, your registration is binding. Your place is confirmed only after full payment is received and you receive written confirmation from the course provider.
Fees and Payment
Course fees depend on whether you attend on-site or online and are stated in SEK, with VAT applied where required by law. Payment must be made by the invoice due date or at the time of registration, depending on the payment method. Late payments may result in fees, interest, or loss of access to the course.
Refunds and Cancellations
Because the number of places is limited, course fees are non-refundable once your registration is confirmed. This applies even if you cancel or do not attend.
Participant Substitution
If you cannot attend, you may transfer your place to another person, subject to approval by the course provider and provided the request is made no later than April 1, 2026.
Course Materials
All course materials are for your personal use only. Recording, copying, or sharing course content without written permission is not allowed.
Online Participation
Only the registered participant may attend online sessions. Identity checks may be used to ensure compliance.
Course Changes
Minor changes to the course content, schedule, instructors, or format may occur, provided the overall quality and purpose of the course remain the same.
Force Majeure
If events outside the course provider’s control occur (such as natural disasters, pandemics, or government restrictions), the course may be rescheduled or delivered in an alternative format. Refunds are not provided in such cases.
Acceptance
By registering and/or paying the course fee, you agree to these terms.
Tearms and conditions
These Terms and Conditions are intended to ensure a fair, secure, and professional course experience while protecting the rights and interests of both the course provider and the participants.
1. Binding Registration
By submitting a registration for the course, the participant enters into a binding agreement with the course provider. The registration constitutes a firm commitment to attend the course in accordance with these Terms and Conditions.
2. Completion of Registration
A registration is considered complete and valid only when:
- The full course fee has been paid in accordance with the payment terms set out below; and
- The participant has received a written registration confirmation from the course provider or training center.
Access to course materials, platforms, and sessions will only be granted once both conditions have been fulfilled.
3. Fees, Limited Availability, and Refund Policy
Due to the limited number of available places, all course fees are non-refundable once registration has been completed and confirmed. No refunds will be granted in the event of cancellation, non-attendance, or withdrawal by the participant, regardless of reason.
4. Participant Substitution
If the registered participant is unable to attend, the registration may be transferred to another attendee. Any request for substitution must be submitted in writing and approved by the course provider no later than April 1, 2026. After this date, substitutions will no longer be permitted.
5. Payment Terms
5.1 Payment Methods
Participants residing in Sweden may pay using:
- Invoice (faktura), or
- Swish to “123 444 94 50”
· International participants pay via bank transfer to the bank account specified below:
S.D.O.C. Consulting AB
Organization number: 559310-3590
IBAN: SE40 8000 0848 0673 4664 2130
BIC: SWEDSESS
VAT number: SE559310359001
5.2 Invoice and Due Date
Payment by invoice is subject to a 14-day payment term, calculated from the invoice date, unless otherwise stated on the invoice. The full invoiced amount must be paid by the due date indicated.
5.3 Late Payment, Fees, and Interest
In the event of late payment, the course provider reserves the right to charge:
- An administration fee of SEK 625 per reminder.
· Interest on overdue payments may be charged in accordance with the Swedish Interest Act (räntelagen), calculated from the due date until full payment has been received.
5.4 Non-Payment
If payment is not received by the due date, the course provider reserves the right to:
- Withhold or suspend access to course materials, digital platforms, or sessions; and/or
- Cancel the participant’s registration.
· If payment is not received despite reminder notices, the outstanding claim may be referred to a debt collection agency and/or submitted to the Swedish Enforcement Authority (Kronofogden) for collection. Any additional costs arising from collection measures, including statutory fees, will be charged to the participant in accordance with applicable Swedish law.
6. Course Fees and Pricing
All prices are stated in Swedish kronor (SEK).
On-site participation:
- SEK 12,000 excluding VAT
- SEK 15,000 including VAT
Online participation:
- SEK 10,800 excluding VAT
- SEK 13,500 including VAT
VAT is applied in accordance with applicable Swedish tax legislation.
7. Prohibition of Copying, Recording, and Distribution
Participants are strictly prohibited from copying, recording, reproducing, distributing, or sharing any course materials, whether in physical, digital, or any other format, without prior written consent from the course provider.
All course materials are provided exclusively for the personal use of the registered participant and may not be shared, transferred, or made accessible to any third party.
In the event of a breach of these terms, including unauthorized copying, recording, or distribution of course materials, the course provider reserves the right to claim appropriate compensation for any damages incurred.
8. Online Participation and Identity Verification
For online courses or live digital sessions, only the registered participant is permitted to attend. Participants agree to comply with any reasonable identity verification or participation control measures implemented by the course provider to ensure that no unregistered individuals gain access to the course or its content.
9. Changes to the Course
The course provider reserves the right to make minor changes to the course content, schedule, instructors, or delivery format, provided that such changes do not materially affect the overall quality or purpose of the course.
10. Acceptance of Terms
By applying to the course and/or submitting payment, the participant confirms that they have read, understood, and accepted these Terms and Conditions and agrees to be legally bound by them.