Spine Universe Site Up
The AANS section of the SpineUniverse.com Web site is now up and running. It includes information for both patients and referring physicians. AANS members can register their practices free-of-charge in the “Find a Specialist” section, which allows visitors to the site to search by specialty, geographic location and other criteria. SpineUniverse.com will also provide a link to a neurosurgeon’s Web site. SpineUniverse is at: www.spineuniverse.com. For information, contact Susan Nowicki, APR, AANS Director of Communications, at [email protected].
Section on Cereborvascular Surgery
The fourth annual meeting of the AANS/CNS Section on Cerebrovascular Surgery and the American Society of Interventional and Therapeutic Neuroradiology (ASITN) will be held on Feb. 9-12 at the Hilton Waikoloa Village in Hawaii. The conference also is sponsored by the Japanese Society of Surgery for Cerebral Stroke and the Japanese Society of Intravascular Neurosurgery.
Participants can obtain up to 27.5 hours in category 1 credit toward the AMA Physician’s Recognition Award and view the latest technical exhibits and 100 posters. More than 400 scientific presentations and 20 state-of-the-art luncheon seminars with over 75 speakers will be part of the program.
Thirty-six oral paper presentations will be made, and two “How I Do It” sessions featuring “Management of Unruptured Aneurysms” and “Management of Arteriovenous Malformations” will be offered. Two special courses will be presented on Friday, Feb. 9. Special Course 1 is “Critical Care of Neurosurgical and Endovascular Patients.”Special Course 2 is “Extracranial Carotid Reconstruction: Endarterectomy, Angioplasty and Stenting.”
For information, visit www.neurosurgery.org/cv.
Section on Neurotrauma and Critical Care
The Committee on Outcomes and the AANS/CNS Section on Neurotrauma and Critical Care announced an online tool to track outcomes of patients with subdural hematomas.
The tool allows neurosurgeons to enter basic clinical and outcome data on their patients with subdural hematoma at presentation and three months later. Entered data can be compared with others using the tool, providing a nationwide benchmarking of an individual’s practice.
The tool is available at: https://research.outcome sciences.com. A username and password can be obtained through N://OC® at www.neurosurgery.org/ practicemgmt.
Section on Pediatric Neurological Surgery
Anthony J. Raimondi, MD, lost his long battle with lymphoma on June 16. There are few in pediatric neurosurgery who were not touched by his energy and devotion to our field. David McLone, MD, delivered the following eulogy for Dr. Raimondi July 28 at Children’s Memorial Hospital in Chicago:
“Most of you know of Dr. Raimondi’s contribution to Children’s Memorial Hospital and Northwestern University. Some may not know that he was unique in that he was Professor of Surgery, Professor of Radiology and Professor of Anatomy. He also was given a chair in neurosurgery while chairman at Northwestern.
I arrived from the University of Michigan in 1965. I already knew that I wanted to be a neurosurgeon. I did not realize that I was soon to meet a man who would determine what kind of neurosurgeon I wanted to be.
My first impression of Dr. Raimondi was a man too young to be a chairman-and great hair. I think I most remember the great hair. Tailored Pucci suits, monogrammed shirts and a white coat always left open so that it flowed with his rapid gait. A gait that exuded confidence bordering on cockiness. Usually some resident or secretary was at his side struggling to keep up. On one of these jaunts I accompanied him to the parking lot where I saw my first Alpha Romeo, an Italian sport car, naturally. Years later I would acquire my own Alpha Romeo.
This was to be the hardest that I would work in my life and at the same time the most exciting part of my medical education. This man made rounds an event. We worked every other night all night and then sat in a dark room each afternoon for two hours to go over the day’s angiograms. We were convinced that he had eyes in the back of his head. If your head nodded he called on you. He taught us anatomy, to think, plan and execute. During his time at Cook County Hospital he established a residency training program, the first accredited in 10 years. He was awarded a National Institutes of Health grant to study hydrocephalus in genetic mutant mice and established a research laboratory.
But it always came back to children. He knew that they were special and their neurosurgical needs were not understood or met. He would identify pediatric neurosurgery as a specialty, introduce angiography as a diagnostic tool in children, define the vascular changes characteristic of hydrocephalus in the infant, and popularize a safe and effective means to treat it.
His arrival at Children’s Memorial propelled this institution into international prominence. Dr. Raimondi established a pediatric neurosurgical service that we, the staff and children, continue to benefit from today.
Words like flamboyant, charismatic, and others have been used to describe this man. I prefer teacher.”
This article was reprinted with permission from Short Cuts, December 2000.
AANS/CNS Section on Disorders of the Spine and
Peripheral Nerves
The Section has established two new research grants-the Larson Award and the Sonntag Award. The awards provide peer review for clinical research projects to improve proposals and thereby enhance competitiveness for NIH funding. The awards also establish the AANS/CNS Spine Section as a known source for quality clinical research.
The awards, which range from $15,000 to $30,000, are for primary investigators of planned clinical studies requiring national level funding for grant proposals and external consultations. The funds also are to help develop proposals, planning meetings and the collection of pilot data. Work that can be completed without such support, such as literature review and preliminary protocol design, should be done before applying for the awards.
The format of the proposal should follow that of the NIH grant package. Specifically, applications should not exceed five single-spaced pages. The applicants should address their specific aims, pertinent literature review and previous studies review. A plan for use of the funds and a detailed budget are required. The budget should not include salary support for the primary investigator or co-investigators.
Send six copies of the proposals to be received no later than December 15, 2001, to Michael G. Fehlings, MD, PhD, Toronto Hospital, 399 Bathurst St., Suite 2-417, Toronto, Ontario M5T 2S8 Canada.
Information is available at (416) 603-5627, [email protected] or at www.neurosurgery.org/spine.
Submissions are sought for two other awards.
The Cloward Fellowship Award, sponsored by Danek/ Medtronic Sofamore, Danek, is awarded annually to one or two U.S. or Canadian trained neurosurgical residents to provide supplemental funds for advanced education and research in disorders of the spine or peripheral nerves in the form of fellowship training. The amount of the award is $30,000. The deadline is September 15, 2001.
The Mayfield Award is presented annually by the Section on Disorders of the Spine and Peripheral Nerves to the neurosurgical resident who authors an outstanding research manuscript detailing a laboratory or clinical investigation in the area of spinal or peripheral nerve disorders. Two awards are available, one for clinical research and one for basic science research. Each award is valued at $500. The application deadline is Sept. 15, 2001.
For information and submission forms, contact Keith R. Kuhlengel, MD, 1671 Crooked Oak Dr., P.O. Box 10247, Lancaster, PA 17605-4207, (717) 569-5331, [email protected], or visit https://www.neurosurgery.org/spine.
Why attend the 17th Annual Meeting of the AANS/ CNS Section on Disorders of the Spine and Peripheral Nerves?
First, you can earn up to 20.5 credit hours in category I toward the AMA Physicians Recognition Award. Second, attend scientific sessions presented by leading experts in spine and peripheral nerve neurosurgery. And, third, enjoy the many attractions of the Pointe South Mountain Resort in Phoenix, located along the unspoiled foothills of the Phoenix South Mountains. The meeting will be held February 14-17. Other highlights include pre-meeting special courses on “New Concepts and Technologies: The Impact on Your Practice” and “Management of Nerve Injury,” more than 36 oral presentations, more than 100 scientific posters and more than 70 exhibits displaying the latest innovations. In addition, there will be a post-meeting resident course on the “Fundamental Principles of Spine Surgery” and a post-meeting course on “CPT Coding for Spine Surgeons.”
For information, call the AANS at (847) 378-0500 or visit www.neurosurgery.org/spine.
Menezes Honored
The Section on Disorders of the Spine and Peripheral Nerves honored Arnold Menezes, MD, for his valuable contributions to the field of spinal surgery at its 2000 Annual Meeting in Palm Springs, Calif. Dr. Menezes has been active within the Section for more than a decade. He is presently Professor and Vice Chairman of the Division of Neurosurgery at the University of Iowa in Iowa City, where he has practiced for more than 25 years.
AANS/CNS Voice Concern Over Lumbar Spinal Stenosis Study
The AANS and CNS are concerned that a draft study on lumbar spinal stenosis is faulty and will promote nonsurgical intervention. The Washington Committee found fault with the draft of a study by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality on “Treatment of Degenerative Lumbar Spinal Stenosis: An Evidence-Based Summary and Analysis of the Literature.”
The AANS and CNS issued a letter to the agency expressing concern about the draft report. Signed by Stewart B. Dunsker, MD, AANS President; Issam A. Awad, MD, CNS President; and Curtis A. Dickman, MD, Chairman of the AANS/CNS Section on Disorders of the Spine and Peripheral Nerves, the letter read in part:
“In general, the report is a thoughtful and comprehensive evidence-based analysis of the published medical literature on the topic of degenerative lumbar stenosis. … Based on the review of the literature, the report concludes that there is very limited objective scientific evidence available, that is, a paucity of Class I and Class II evidence exists on this important health concern, which means that very few evidence-based conclusions can be drawn. This said, however, the AANS and CNS wish to raise two important points for your consideration.
- “Management of patients with degenerative lumbar spinal stenosis with disabling symptoms requires clinical judgment and experience, and is based on the severity of neurological signs and symptoms. Large clinical experiences support the value of surgical and nonsurgical treatment for selected patients with lumbar spinal stenosis. The AANS and CNS therefore strongly believe that the paucity of Class I and Class II data should not be used as a basis to deny patients access to surgical and nonsurgical treatment options for this disease and that the report should include a statement to this effect. Despite an absence of formal clinical trials, patients still need to be treated for this disease and the collected observational experience of neurosurgeons definitely suggests that many patients are indeed helped by surgery. It would be inappropriate, therefore, for this report to serve as the basis of denying these patients the opportunity for treatment while additional information is collected about the natural history, diagnosis and management of the problem.
- “Neurosurgeons have extensive clinical experience with the treatment of lumbar spinal stenosis, which provides valuable information. There is a lot we do know about this disease despite the lack of randomized, blinded study data. For example, the anatomy, pathophysiology, and mechanics of the disorder have been clearly characterized. The neurological signs and symptoms and the extent of patient disability caused by lumbar stenosis are well understood. Lateral recess stenosis causes nerve root impingement, central canal stenosis causes neurogenic claudication, nerve root, and cauda equina dysfunction. We do know how to definitively image this disease entity with MRI and CT/myelography. Based on this information, neurosurgeons treating patients with lumbar spinal stenosis are therefore able to discern appropriate treatment mechanisms for their patients. “There are numerous examples of successful medical treatments that have been implemented based on physicians’ treatment experience rather than as a result of randomized clinical studies. … The final report should therefore recognize that while prospective, randomized, blinded clinical studies may be the so-called “gold standard” by which many evaluate the efficacy of medical treatments, such studies are not always required to determine the most appropriate ways in which physicians treat their patients. Such is the case for spinal stenosis, particularly in situations where conservative management options have failed. If this report leads to the withholding of surgical treatment because this mode of treating this disease is not subject to a double-blinded study, we are very concerned that many of our citizens with progressive disability will be denied helpful intervention. “Clearly, this report demonstrates a need for further studies that address the clinical management of lumbar spinal stenosis, and we hope that this report will encourage the funding of high quality clinical research to answer the questions that it explores. To that end, we encourage you to include a strong recommendation in the report that specifically solicits the financial resources that are needed to conduct this research.”
Pharmacia-Upjohn Resident Research Award Deadline
The application deadline is March 1 for the Pharmacia-Upjohn Resident Research Awards in Cerebrovascular Disease. Available to residents in training programs in North America, the award provides up to $15,000 in support of research related to cerebrovascular disease. Funding is available July 1. For applications, contact Robert J. Dempsey, MD, Dept. of Neurological Surgery, University of Wisconsin, 600 Highland Ave., Madison, WI 53792, (608) 263-1410, [email protected].