Dr Byki Huntjens

Overview

Following her Bachelor in Optometry from the Hogeschool Utrecht (the Netherlands), Byki moved to the UK in 2002 to start her MSc in Investigative Ophthalmology and Vision Science at the University of Manchester. After completion, she worked as a research assistant at the same institution, and was granted a PhD sponsorship from Lein Applied Diagnostics to investigate a non-invasive method for glucose measurements in the aqueous humour. She completed her doctorate in 2008 and joined City, University of London in 2009 as a lecturer. Currently she is module lead for Contact Lenses (UG), and Professional Higher Certificate in Contact Lenses as well as Medical Retina (PG), and Lead for Teaching Excellence in the School of Health representing optometry. She supervises several MSc and PhD students in the field of contact lenses, myopia, and dry eye. She launched the dry eye clinic at City. Byki was elected to Council of the British Contact Lens Association (BCLA), and is Chair of the British and Irish University and College Contact Lens Educators (BUCCLE).

Qualifications

1. Dry eye management and contact lens retention - certificate, British Contact Lens Association, United Kingdom, Jul 2019
2. PGDipAP, City University London, United Kingdom, Jan 2009 – Jan 2012
3. PhD, University of Manchester, United Kingdom, Jan 2004 – Jan 2008
4. MSc, University of Manchester, United Kingdom, Jan 2002 – Jan 2003
5. BOptom, Hogeschool van Utrecht (HvU), Netherlands, 1996 – 2001

Administrative roles

1. Programme Director UG Optometry, Division of Optometry, City, University of London
2. Member of the Ethics Advisory Team (Division of Optometry)
3. Member of the Research Ethics Committee and of the Moodle Support Group (School of Health Sciences)
4. Member of the Learning Spaces Group (University)

Employment

1. Visiting Scholar, UC Berkeley, Jan – Apr 2019
2. Lead for Teaching Excellence, City, University of London, Sep 2016 – present
3. Senior Lecturer, Optometry and Visual Sciences, City, University London, Aug 2016 – present
4. Programme Director BSc (Hons) Optometry, City, University of London, Aug 2015 – Aug 2018
5. Lecturer, Optometry and Visual Sciences, City, University London, Jan 2009 – Aug 2016
6. Clinical supervisor Primary Care and Contact Lens clinics, City, University London, 2007 – 2009
7. Resident Optometrist, Michel Guillon optician, Jan 2007 – Jan 2009
8. Locum Optometrist, Greater Manchester, Jan 2004 – Jan 2007
9. Research Assistant, University of Manchester Institute of Science and Technology, Jan 2003 – Jan 2004

Fellowships

1. Senior Fellow (SFHEA), Higher Education Academy, May 2019 – present
2. Fellow of the BCLA (FBCLA), British Contact lens Association, Jun 2018 – present
3. Fellow of IACLE (FIACLE), International Association of Contact Lens Educators, Jan 2016 – present
4. Fellow (FHEA), Higher Education Academy, Jan 2011 – May 2019

Memberships of committees

1. Vice-Chair, British & Irish University & College Contact Lens Educators, Feb 2019 – present
2. Elected Council Member, British Contact Lens Association, Jun 2018 – present

Memberships of professional organisations

1. International Association of Contact Lens Educators (IACLE), Jan 2015 – present
2. British Contact Lens Association (BCLA), Jan 2015 – present
3. General Optical Council, 2003 – present
4. College of Optometrists, 2003 – present

Languages

Dutch; Flemish.

Teaching

Educational Leadership

02 Module lead for OV2006 Contact Lenses I | MSc co-Module lead for Professional Higher Certificate in Contact Lenses | MSc co-Module lead for Professional Certificate in Medical Retina

Undergraduate Modules

OV1015 Visual optics | OV3025 Clinical and Professional Practice | OV3021 Research Studies

Postgraduate Modules

OVM056 Medical Retina | OVM006 Glaucoma | OVM032/057 Professional Higher Certificate in Contact Lenses | OVM061 Clinical Management Guidelines | APM002 SHS MSc Dissertation Module

Research Overview

Byki completed her doctorate called 'Acute anterior ocular changes in Diabetes Mellitus' in 2008. Currently, her main area of research includes dry eye, contact lenses and macular pigment optical density in relation to foveal anatomy using optical coherence tomography. Particular interests are 1) air pollution and dry eye, 2) ortho keratology contact lenses and myopia control, and 3) ethnic variations in spatial profiling of macular pigment.

Grants

Together with Dr Manbir Nagra and Professor Chris Hull, an industry grant was obtained to design and manufacturer an optimal orthokeratology lens for myopia control (2016).
Byki was given the opportunity to be PI of a City University Doctoral Studentship (2012- 2015) to investigate the relationship between macular pigment optical density and foveal anatomic architecture in different ethnic populations.

Research students

Featured publications

1. Nagra, M., Akhtar, A., Huntjens, B. and Campbell, P. (2021). Open versus closed view autorefraction in young adults. Journal of Optometry, 14(1), pp. 86–91. doi:10.1016/j.optom.2020.06.007.
2. Rutledge, G.A., Pratt, S.G., Richer, S.P., Huntjens, B., Perry, C.B., Pratt, G. … Podella, C. (2020). Foveal macular pigment dip in offspring of age-related macular degeneration patients is inversely associated with omega-3 index. BMC Ophthalmology, 20(1). doi:10.1186/s12886-020-01742-0.
3. Mulder, J.A., van Tilborg, M.M. and Huntjens, B. (2020). The effect of sodium fluorescein on anterior eye surface measurements. Contact Lens and Anterior Eye, 43(4), pp. 402–407. doi:10.1016/j.clae.2020.02.016.
4. Wolffsohn, J.S., Dhirajlal, H., Vianya-Estopa, M., Nagra, M., Madden, L., Sweeney, L.E. … Maldonado-Codina, C. (2020). Fast versus gradual adaptation of soft daily disposable contact lenses in neophyte wearers. Contact Lens and Anterior Eye, 43(3), pp. 268–273. doi:10.1016/j.clae.2019.08.011.
5. Vianya-Estopa, M., Nagra, M., Cochrane, A., Retallic, N., Dunning, D., Terry, L. … Joshi, M. (2020). Optimising subjective anterior eye grading precision. Contact Lens and Anterior Eye. doi:10.1016/j.clae.2020.03.006.
6. Nagra, M. and Huntjens, B. (2020). Smartphone ophthalmoscopy: patient and student practitioner perceptions. Journal of Medical Systems, 44(1). doi:10.1007/s10916-019-1477-0.
7. Hutchins, B. and Huntjens, B. (2020). Patients’ attitudes and beliefs to presbyopia and its correction. Journal of Optometry. doi:10.1016/j.optom.2020.02.001.
8. Huntjens, B., Basi, M. and Nagra, M. (2019). Evaluating a new objective grading software for conjunctival hyperaemia. Contact Lens and Anterior Eye. doi:10.1016/j.clae.2019.07.003.
9. Ctori, I., Mahroo, O.A., Williams, K.M., Hammond, C.J. and Huntjens, B. (2018). Repeatability of the macular pigment spatial profile: A comparison of objective versus subjective classification. Acta Ophthalmologica, 96(7). doi:10.1111/aos.13725.
10. Hobby, A.E., Kozareva, D., Yonova-Doing, E., Hossain, I.T., Katta, M., Huntjens, B. … Mahroo, O.A. (2018). Effect of varying skin surface electrode position on electroretinogram responses recorded using a handheld stimulating and recording system. Documenta Ophthalmologica, 137(2), pp. 79–86. doi:10.1007/s10633-018-9652-z.
11. Bott, D., Huntjens, B. and Binns, A. (2018). Nutritional and smoking advice recalled by patients attending a UK age-related macular degeneration clinic. Journal of Public Health (United Kingdom), 40(3), pp. 614–622. doi:10.1093/pubmed/fdx115.
12. Ctori, I. and Huntjens, B. (2017). The association between foveal morphology and macular pigment spatial distribution: An ethnicity study. PLoS ONE, 12(1). doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0169520.
13. Wolffsohn, J.S., Naroo, S.A., Christie, C., Morris, J., Conway, R., Maldonado-Codina, C. … Harknett, T. (2015). Anterior eye health recording. Contact Lens and Anterior Eye, 38(4), pp. 266–271. doi:10.1016/j.clae.2015.03.001.
14. Wolffsohn, J.S., Naroo, S.A., Christie, C., Morris, J., Conway, R., Maldonado-Codina, C. … Harknett, T. (2015). History and symptom taking in contact lens fitting and aftercare. Contact Lens and Anterior Eye, 38(4), pp. 258–265. doi:10.1016/j.clae.2015.03.002.
15. Ctori, I. and Huntjens, B. (2015). Repeatability of foveal measurements using spectralis optical coherence tomography segmentation software. PLoS ONE, 10(6). doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0129005.
16. Ctori, I., Gruppetta, S. and Huntjens, B. (2015). The effects of ocular magnification on Spectralis spectral domain optical coherence tomography scan length. Graefes Arch Clin Exp Ophthalmol, 253(5), pp. 733–738. doi:10.1007/s00417-014-2915-9.
17. Huntjens, B., Asaria, T.S., Dhanani, S., Konstantakopoulou, E. and Ctori, I. (2014). Macular pigment spatial profiles in South Asian and white subjects. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci, 55(3), pp. 1440–1446. doi:10.1167/iovs.13-13204.
18. Huntjens, B., Charman, W.N., Workman, H., Hosking, S.L. and O'Donnell, C. (2012). Short-term stability in refractive status despite large fluctuations in glucose levels in diabetes mellitus type 1 and 2. PLoS One, 7(12). doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0052947.
19. Huntjens, B. and O’Donnell, C. (2006). Refractive error changes in Diabetes Mellitus. Optometry in Practice, 7(3), pp. 103–114.

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