Thousands of ophthalmic and industry professionals flocked to the nation’s capital last weekend for the “premier event in anterior segment surgery”: the 2026 American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgeons (ASCRS) annual meeting.
Amidst the plethora of hands-on surgical training, business strategy, and leadership development opportunities offered over the four-day event, exhibiting companies also showcased new developments in surgical devices and practice management systems—all geared toward improved workflow and patient care in clinical practice.
If you missed the event, not to worry. Our Eyes On Eyecare team has the rundown on a few (not comprehensive, keep in mind) highlights and big-picture takeaways.
Let’s take it from the top: How is surgical planning evolving?
One thing was made clear from this weekend’s meeting: Surgical planning is now a more organized, data-focused, and cooperative part of the overall process—it is no longer just a final decision before surgery.
Today, it occupies a clear place between diagnosis and treatment, acting as a specific phase that combines diagnostics, patient selection, and decisions about procedures.
Can we get an example of this?
As ZEISS Medical Technology showcased on the show floor, it offers an extensive arsenal of surgical tools that measure the eye—from cornea to retina.
Among its workflow technologies:
- ZEISS IOLMaster 700 (with expanded calculation capabilities)
- ZEISS VERACITY Surgery Planner (with new formulas and an artificial intelligence-based intraocular lens [IOL] calculator)
- ZEISS CLINIC 360 (previewed as an all-in-one browser-based software solution that aggregates clinical data at scale)
- To note: This has not yet received FDA 510(k) clearance
Also worth noting: The recently released ZEISS Collaborative Care, a browser-based software application powered by the company’s health data platform.
- What it does: Offers surgeons a flexible way to collaborate – as a standalone cloud application and integrated with ZEISS’s existing data management solutions, including the ZEISS FORUM.
Didn’t the company also announce a new commercial launch?
Indeed. That would be the ZEISS VisioGen (now exclusively available in the U.S.).
- What it is: A “human-verified, AI-based patient engagement platform built exclusively for ophthalmology clinical practices.
- What it does: The VisioGen support practices by:
- Integrating directly with clinic websites to manage patient engagement, including outside business hours
- Extending clinics’ availability without staff overtime
Explain this “human” component.
This “human-verified” component of the platform comes into play by all AI-assisted responses provided to patients undergoing a human review from a ZEISS-trained optometrist prior to delivery.
- See here for more on this.
The intent: Is for the approach to “reduce variability in communication, support compliance considerations, and improve visibility into patient demand,” according to ZEISS.
Stick with this concept of AI in the clinical workflow.
A prime example of this: ModMed and its all-in-one ophthalmology software with a fully automated exam workflow that handles documentation, interpretation, prescribing, and billing.
- The company demoed its workflow on the showfloor, which illustrated how AI-enabled procedure notes can be generated automatically, billing codes assigned, and prescriptions pre-built.
With AI becoming part of the end-to-end surgical workflow, its utilization can also be seen in additional practice management players like Barti (check out their AI-based guidelines for electronic health records) and Nextech.
Now let’s talk modern clinical workflows.
Another notable topic at ASCRS:
- Clinical practices are increasingly adopting an approach that moves from patient assessment to patient education, then into surgical planning, followed by treatment and postoperative validation.
As Ji Hyae Lee, MD, an ophthalmologist and refractive surgery fellow at Parkhurst NuVision in San Antonio, Texas, noted during an Eyes On Eyecare event:
- “I want something that my patients can look up right away and find.”
Go on …
This sentiment was also shared by Dr. Kyle Jones, MD, a cataract and refractive surgery specialist at Wang Vision Institute in Nashville, Tennessee.
- Dr. Jones said that his patients have begun asking highly informed questions, particularly in the past 12 months.
Further: The team at Practice Flow , developer of the all-inclusive, cloud-based electronic medical records (EMR) and practice management software, emphasized that “it’s really not patient flow… it’s about your practice workflow”
- A structured practice flow helps standardize care and ensures that key decisions are not overlooked, they said.
Noted. And were there any new postop care innovations?
Not new, per say … but Nordic Pharma, a subsidiary of Nordic Group B.V, showcased its FDA-cleared LACRIFILL Canalicular Gel for dry eye symptoms in booth demonstrations, highlighting the continued importance of ocular surface management in surgical patients.
- Click here for a refresh on this novel therapy, which launched to the U.S. commercial market in 2024.
- And in recent news: The company announced that it is now shipping cannulas along with its syringes of LACRIFILL.
Intrepid Eye Society’s Nick Bruns, OD, FAAO, a consultant for RxSight, also noted during a booth presentation that clinicians shouldn't “look at dry eye issues as a setback; it’s an opportunity to optimize.”
Speaking of RxSight …
The company shared a milestone achievement for its Light Adjustable Lens (LAL), announcing that over 300K LAL implants have been performed since its commercial launch in April 2024.
- Check out more on this LAL system, originally developed as the first and only lens able to be adjusted in the eye following cataract surgery.
- And read up on the new “I Trust it with My Own Eyes” program launched during the meeting.
What new IOL innovations were on display?
Intraocular lens development was, as you might expect, a major focus—with companies pushing new approaches to optical performance and patient outcomes.
For example: Alcon announced the U.S. commercial launch of its new Clareon TruPlus monofocal and toric IOL.
Debuting at ASCRS, this latest addition to the Clareon IOL brand is designed to offer increased depth of focus (DOF) while maintaining “high-quality distance vision” typically generated from a monofocal lens.
- In other words: It’s designed to correct pre-existing corneal astigmatism.
Get all the details on the lens (including its utilization of Opti-Balance Technology, a new proprietary tech that boosts light energy to create a slight extended depth of focus (EDOF).
And didn’t an IOL competitor also have an update?
Yes! Johnson & Johnson, to be specific.
The company converted its March 2026 FDA approval of the TECNIS PureSee IOL into an ASCRS narrative focused on contrast sensitivity preservation, along with presenting new clinical outcomes data.
- See here for insights on this IOL.
And outside of J&J BVI continued its U.S. entry momentum for the FDA-approved FINEVISION HP (hydrophobic) IOL after reporting the first surgeon-conducted implantations in February.
You mentioned new clinical data … any others worth noting?
Plenty …but you’ll just have to stay tuned and check back at Glance for those updates.