CHICAGO—More than 25,000 people are expected to attend the 120th annual meeting of the American Academy of Ophthalmology, which gets under way here today at McCormick Place.

The five-day AAO 2016 event is the world's largest showcase for vision research and innovation, and it will be held in conjunction with the Asia-Pacific Academy of Ophthalmology meeting, according to an AAO statement.

The 2016 meeting will feature more than 350 instruction courses, 56 surgical skills labs, 51 symposia and 585 exhibitors, collectively addressing all aspects of the ophthalmic profession.

Among the meeting highlights:

• Progress in the precision of cataract and LASIK surgery: Professor and Allen, Mosbacher and Law Chair of the Baylor College of Medicine Ophthalmology Department Douglas E. Koch, MD, will discuss how new technology has great potential to improve the precision of cataract and LASIK surgery. Dr. Koch will describe innovations such as intraocular lenses whose optical power can be modified postoperatively.

• Surgical alternatives to reading glasses: Surgical treatments for presbyopia, the blurred near vision people often get starting around age 40, will be the focus of two lectures. Julian D. Stevens, DO, consultant ophthalmic surgeon at Moorfields Eye Hospital, will discuss corneal inlays, and Dean of the College of Medicine at University of Illinois Dimitri T. Azar, MD, will review recent advancements in the field, including the development of the Google/Verily smart accommodating intraocular lenses.

A searchable program is available at www.aao.org/mobile.