Chicago will be the host of the USA Aniridia Network’s 2005 Medical Conference from July 13th to July 17th at the Allerton Crowne Plaza. The USA Aniridia Network is a 501(C)3 nonprofit organization helping to unite, encourage, and teach the families with aniridia, the public and the medical community about this blinding eye disease. Children with aniridia are born with low vision or blind, thus they are a part of the low vision/blind community. This year the network wants to reach out to their fellow visually impaired/blind community by offering several meetings on generic low vision topics.

"The medical conference will be extremely beneficial to doctors, residents, medical students, and researchers because we will be having the top physicians in their fields who have extensive aniridia experience," commented Jill Nerby, Executive Director of the USA Aniridia Network, on the necessity of attending the conference. "Not much is mentioned in the textbooks, and aniridia is much more than just a lack of irises. The conference includes a PHYSICIANS DAY breakout in which doctors will be able to learn more about aniridia, discuss its latest treatments with their colleagues with aniridia patients, and allow them to be able to treat the growing population of aniridia patients better."

For more information about aniridia or the USA Aniridia Network, please visit the website at www.aniridia.net. You can also register for the medical conference by visiting the website. If you would like a registration packet mailed to you, please contact the network via e-mail at register@aniridia.net. If you are a physician, resident medical student professional or non-member of the USA Aniridia Network, please specify category in your request to receive the appropriate registration packet.

The USA Aniridia Network is a nonprofit organization fighting low vision and blindness by informing and educating families, teachers, employers, and physicians about this blinding eye disease. People with aniridia are born with partial or complete absence of the iris, which is only one facet responsible for the low vision. Associated conditions include corneal scarring, glaucoma, cataract, nystagmus, Wilms’ tumors, kidney and pancreatic problems, gonadblastoma, and mental retardation. Please contact the USA Aniridia Network at info@aniridia.net or 901-752-8835 with questions.