From the Sunday opening reception at Universal Orlando’s Islands of Adventure to the AANS president’s closing remarks the following Thursday, the 2004 AANS Annual Meeting demonstrated once again why so many consider the AANS meeting to be the preeminent annual neurosurgical event.
More than 6,000 people, including nearly 3,000 medical professionals, participated May 1-6 in the 72nd annual event, which was chaired by William T. Couldwell, MD, PhD. As a premier educational opportunity, participants could earn up to 21 credits in category 1 toward the American Medical Association’s Physician’s Recognition Award.
Superlative Science
As always, the main attraction was the superlative science presented in the scientific program, chaired this year by Richard G. Fessler, MD. Four plenary sessions, six scientific sessions, 80 breakfast seminars, 43 practical clinics and more than 500 posters were featured. In addition, AANS/CNS sections planned nine sessions that focused on neurosurgery’s subspecialties.
The cutting-edge medical research featured at this meeting addressed:
- 3 bone marrow-derived stem cells for potential new treatments of glioma;
- a human brain-to-machine interface that potentially will allow a patient to control a neuroprosthetic device such as a wheelchair;
- improved motor functions of patients with Parkinson’s disease by stimulation of the injured dopamine system using recombinant-methyl glial cell-line derived neurotrophic factor;
- helmet use to reduce the risk of head injury for riders of all terrain vehicles and motorcycles;
- vaccination using tumor lysate pulsed dendritic cells for patients with malignant and aggressive brain tumors; and
- artificial disc implantation for treatment of degenerative disc disease.
These medical science topics were among those chosen by peer-review process for release to the media. A socioeconomic paper additionally was selected. The topic, the relative shortage of neurosurgeons in the United States, also was the cover story of the Winter 2003 Bulletin. These press releases and other media relations efforts resulted in getting neurosurgery’s message to an audience of nearly 60 million people worldwide to date.
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| The opening reception, for which the islands of Jurassic Park and the Lost Continent at Universal’s Islands of Adventure theme park were open exclusively to meeting attendees and their families, was among the thoroughly enjoyable events held during the 2004 AANS Annual Meeting |
In a related effort, a panel discussion featuring the three winners of the First Annual AANS Media Awards Program debuted at the meeting. The program, which was created to encourage balanced and educational media coverage of neurosurgical topics, featured panelists Laura Biel of the Dallas Morning News, Glendal Jones of Clarian Health, and Judith VandeWater of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
A main goal of the panel discussion was to create a productive dialog between reporters and physicians who
often view one another as adversaries. Doctors asked the journalists what makes them want to cover a story and why they don’t allow the doctor to review a story before it goes to press. Journalists stressed that no good reporter wants to get a story wrong, and that they value developing trust with doctors because it is an essential ingredient for getting the facts straight and encouraging contacts which in turn will help them develop future stories. Pat Clark, who instructed a two-hour breakfast seminar aimed at helping AANS members learn how to develop and deliver a message via print and broadcast media, also participated on the panel. Seminar participants were invited to practice their delivery via one-minute radio interviews in which 50 AANS members participated; their interviews were carried on 1,847 radio stations nationwide, bringing neurosurgery’s message to an audience of more than 40 million listeners.
| AWARDS AND HONORS | |
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Cushing Medal-John A. Jane Sr., MD Dr. Jane received the Harvey Cushing Medal, the highest honor the AANS can bestow on a member, for his numerous professional accomplishments to the field of neurosurgery. The editor of the Journal of Neurosurgery for the past 12 years, he is also editor for Neurosurgical Focus, the Journal of Neurosurgery: Spine and the Journal of Neurosurgery: Pediatrics. His clinical interests and research have been dedicated to the treatment of head injury, disorders of the spine and pediatrics, and he was one of the originators of modern techniques for the treatment of craniofacial disorders. |
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Distinguished Service Award-John A. Kusske, MD Dr. Kusske was honored for his many years of service to the AANS, the neurosurgical community and his patients. His deep interest in the socioeconomic aspects of neurosurgical practice is evidenced in his extensive writings about the managed care industry and the various regulatory mechanisms that affect neurosurgeons including the EMTALA laws, Stark regulations and various aspects of fraud and abuse and their effects on the practice of neurosurgery. |
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Humanitarian Award-Charles Branch, MD Dr. Branch was recognized for his many professional accomplishments and his outstanding service to the development of neurosurgery, particularly as evidenced through his extensive humanitarian efforts in Haiti, Guyana, and Nigeria. In Aba, Nigeria, Dr. Branch and his wife, Sylvia, raised and donated funds to build the only emergency room within a 50-mile radius and provided the first World Health Organization X-ray machine serving a population of more than 1 million impoverished people. |
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Honorary Member–Jacques Brotchi, MD Dr. Brotchi, professor and department chair at the Free University of Brussels, was honored for his outstanding educational, research, or clinical contributions to the neurological sciences. He has published more than 230 papers in international journals, with special emphasis on meningiomas, intraspinal cord tumors and surgical approaches of pineal lesions. The president-elect of the World Federation of Neurosurgical Societies, Dr. Brotchi has been deeply involved in the WFNS educational program since 1991. |
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Van Wagenen Fellow-Stephen M. Russell, MD Dr. Russell of New York University plans to study the molecular pathophysiology of viral infection and reactivation in peripheral and cranial nerve sensory ganglia in the laboratory of Prof. Michael Strupp at the Ludwig-Maximilians University’s Klinikum Grosshadern in Munich, Germany. Applications for the 2005 fellowship are due Oct. 1. In 2005 the 12-month fellowship will carry a $60,000 stipend of which $15,000 will be provided to the hosting entity. |
Special Lectures
Special lecturers from neuroscientists to an economist included: Regis W. Haid Jr., MD (Richard C. Schneider Lecture), Anders Bjorklund,MDD,,PhD (Van Wagenen Lecture) Pasko Rakic, MD, PhD (Hunt-Wilson Lecture), Robert F. Spetzler, MD (Kurze Lecture); and Uwe Reinhardt, PhD (Rhoton Family Lecture).
The Thursday plenary session was entirely devoted to socioeconomic topics. Research on resident work hour changes, the neurosurgical workforce, and how stressors on the neurosurgical workforce affect patients’ access to care were among the papers presented. Dr. Reinhardt, an economist at Princeton University, presented an insightful, entertaining and frequently humorous exploration of why the U.S. healthcare system is so expensive compared with other industrial countries.
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| Rocco Armonda, MD (left), and James Ecklund, MD, pictured here overlooking the exhibit hall, were among the nearly 3,000 medical attendees at the 2004 AANS Annual Meeting. Dr. Armonda and Dr. Ecklund, both Active Military members of the AANS, shared their recent experiences serving in Iraq and Afghanistan, respectively. Dr. Ecklund coauthored “The Neurosurgical Experience at an Echelon 5 Facility During Operation Iraqi Freedom,” presented at the meeting. The study concluded that there was a significant decrease in the casualty rate compared with recent conflicts, possibly due to technical and tactical battlefield superiority and advances in antiballistic protective wear. |
“Every other country uses the healthcare system more cheaply [compared with the United States], he said. Dr. Reinhardt also addressed the U.S. medical liability crisis, noting, “We must get over the idea that unless we can prove a doctor is honorable, he isn’t.”
A. John Popp, MD, who presided over the meeting, hailed Dr. Reinhardt as “one of the most incisive minds in healthcare policy.” In his Presidential Address, entitled “Music, Musicians and the Brain,” Dr. Popp contrasted the musical genius with the musically talented individual. His observations and speculations of the specialization of musicians’ brain structures evolved into a discussion of neurosurgery as a confluence of technology and creativity, and the consummate neurosurgeon as one who advances patient care through technology and creativity.
“Technology…has made diagnosis and surgery more accurate, safer and faster, resulting in better outcomes,” he said. “We are indebted to industry…and to those neurosurgeons and scientists whose creativity has stimulated the development of these technologies.”
The 2005 AANS Annual Meeting, “Education and Innovation,” is scheduled for April 16-21 in New Orleans. La. Annual meeting information is posted in the Annual Meeting section of www.AANS.org as it becomes available.
Manda J. Seaver is staff editor of the Bulletin.
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WINS Hosts Humanitarian and Educator Inspired by Technology and Creativity Contributed by Deborah L. Benzil, MD Greg Mortenson used insightful commentary and stunning photography to inspire an enthusiastic crowd during the Ruth Kerr-Jacoby Annual Lecture presented by Women in Neurosurgery duriing the 2004 AANS Annual Meeting in Orlando, Fla. The lecture is one of a continuing series of programs sponsored by WINS to enhance the scientific program during the annual meetings. Since a1993 climb of Pakistan’s treacherous K22, the world’s second highest mountain, Mortenson has devoted his life to establishing education for girls in remote, often volatile regions of Pakistan and Afghanistan. Through the Central Asia Institute, which he founded, 39 schools supporting over 10,000 children have opened. He often is the only foreigner working in areas where he has established relationships with and the respect of Islamic mullahs, military commandeers, tribal chiefs and thousands of villagers. “It takes three cups of tea to do business here [Pakistan and Afghanistan]: the first cup you are a stranger; the second cup you become a friend, and by the third cup you become family; but the process can take several years,” Mortenson explained. “Educating girls reduces infant mortality, slows population growth, and improves the quality of health and life for the entire community, but most important is the intrinsic value of education instilled in her own community when a literate girl becomes a mother.” |
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Silent Auction Raises $28K for NREF by Terri Bruce The Sixth Annual Young Neurosurgeons Committee Silent Auction held May 1-3 during the AANS Annual Meeting raised more than $28,000 to benefit the Neurosurgery Research and Education Foundation. Through NREF’s fellowship grant program, auction proceeds will help support research efforts of early-career residents and faculty members. A total of 88 items stimulated furious bidding, albeit in an atmosphere of generosity and festivity, down to the last second. Among the items auctioned was a rare copy of “Consecratio Medici” autographed by Harvey Cushing. After 28 bids this priceless book sold for $800. Another “hot” item was an autographed Mario Lemieux Pittsburgh Penguins jersey, which went for $260. The victorious bidder planned to frame the jersey as a gift for his son, “a huge hockey fan.” Another participant weathered furious bidding to secure a beautiful pair of diamond earrings for his wife at a final bid of $1,050. The selection of electronics included four digital cameras, a Sony camcorder, and mini iPods. Also popular were airline tickets, loupes and other assorted items. One pair of binoculars sold for more than $1,000. The Seventh Annual Silent Auction is slated for New Orleans. Information for those interested in supporting that event or in reading more about NREF is available at www.AANS.org/research or from Terri Bruce, development coordinator, at (888) 566-AANS. |
