Issue 32 | December 2022 - EACTS News

Welcoming new Officers

Our decision-making body, the EACTS Council, enables members to have an active role in providing strategic direction to EACTS and setting overall policy and targets. At the 36th EACTS Annual Meeting we welcomed new Officers and Councillors to the Council following elections at our General Assembly.

The following positions were announced:

• Patrick Perier, President

• Franca Melfi, Vice-President

• Rafa Sádaba, Chair of the Education Committee

• Filip Casselman, Chair of the Acquired Cardiac Disease Domain

• Nabil Hussein, Chair of the Residents Committee

We would like to thank our outgoing Officers and Councillors for their hard work and valued contribution to EACTS.

Here, the new President and Vice-President set out what they hope to achieve during their time on the EACTS Council.

Presidential goals

“Over the past few years, cardiothoracic surgery in Europe has progressed considerably with new innovations and advanced technology.

“However, this is not the case in other parts of the world. Africa is a huge continent with a significant and rapidly increasing population that is underserved in terms of cardiac surgery. We need to raise more awareness about this situation and explore how we can bring techniques and technology to colleagues in the African nations most at need.

Immediate past Vice-President, Patrick Perier has been an EACTS member for many years. After obtaining his medical degree at the Paris V University in France, he started his senior residency in the department of Professor Alain Carpentier at the Broussais Hospital. In 1990, he joined the team of the Herz und Gefäss Klinik in Germany to develop mitral valve surgery and started the development of the ‘Mitral Group’. Over the past 20 years, Patrick has made a significant contribution to refine the techniques of minimally invasive mitral valve repair.

“It is a great honour to become President of EACTS. EACTS is a strong and widely recognised Association within the cardiothoracic community, so to be chosen to become President is a great recognition from my peers.

“In my experience, EACTS is more than just a professional Association. It brings people together to meet and build long lasting relationships, which is hugely beneficial for our members. The social aspect of EACTS is very close to my heart.”

“I recognise that this is a big ambition and, of course, the Presidential term is only one year so I hope that I can sow a seed and put in place the foundations of a programme that can be further developed over time.

“I am already encouraged by EACTS’ partnership with the PanAfrican Society of Cardiothoracic Surgery (PASCaTS) which aims to promote cardiothoracic education, research and networking among surgeons in Africa.

“As President of EACTS I want to instil confidence in the next generation of cardiothoracic surgeons. From my conversations with younger colleagues, I know that some young surgeons have questions about their future in cardiothoracic surgery, so I want to encourage them to feel confident when faced with difficult situations.”

President Patrick Perier

Vice-President Franca Melfi

Franca Melfi is Professor of Thoracic Surgery at the Medical School of the University of Pisa and Chair of the university’s Robotic Multidisciplinary Centre for Surgery – Thoracic MIS and Robotic Surgery. A renowned pioneer in the field of robotic surgery, she performed the first robotic procedure in the world for the treatment of lung cancer in 2001. She has become one of the world’s most renowned robotic thoracic surgeons, having completed over 3,000 robotic thoracic procudures - mainly major lung resections for lung cancer.

“I began my journey as a member of EACTS in 1998. Starting out as an active member I then became Chair of the Robotic working group and Chair of the Thoracic Domain. Being elected Vice-President is a huge honour and privilege, proving not only my commitment to EACTS over the years but also my scientific achievements.

“This appointment was unexpected because this position has been under the aegis of male colleagues for a long time. I’m happy with this paradigm shift. I believe it sends a positive message to many young surgeons, especially female surgeons, who I hope can be inspired and empowered.”

Vice-President goals

“As Vice-President I have four key goals for the year ahead.

“Firstly, I would like to promote EACTS membership, especially amongst thoracic surgeons. EACTS is an important Association with a large cardiac membership, and I am delighted that there are a number of new initiatives in place to attract thoracic surgeons to the Association such as the Robotic task force and the Robotic - Thoracic Fellowship.

“According to the Lancet Commission 2015, we are facing a global shortage of more than 143 million/year of surgical procedures and a related need for an additional 2.2 million surgeons. I believe it will be possible to reduce this imbalance through advanced technologies, such as robotics and digital surgery, which, among other things, can promote a sort of democratisation of surgery, improving access to high quality care and creating more opportunities for women surgeons. In addition, this can create the conditions for reducing the gender training gap.

“I would like to reinforce EACTS as the home of innovation and technological progress and grow our relationships with industry and universities and build pathways to teach new technologies, which would be attractive to young surgeons.

“Increasing the role of the EACTS Academy is a strategic goal of EACTS and one that I fully support. The role of residents and the young surgeons within EACTS must be increasingly central. Only through high level training and openness to their ideas and their projects can we look to the future.

“Empowering female surgeons to take up senior positions has become one of the main goals of EACTS, thanks to the extraordinary leadership of Jolanda Kluin. There is still lots of work to do but we are making progress.

“I believe that EACTS is the right place in which innovation, education and quality of care should grow and spread globally. The continuous technological evolution in surgery implies constant updating, which means new challenges and ongoing research and training.”

At the 36th EACTS Annual Meeting, Patrick Myers became the new EACTS Secretary General. He takes over from Rafa Sádaba.

Patrick says: “I am extremely proud to be the new EACTS Secretary General. As a long-standing member of the organisation and past Chair of the Acquired Cardiac Disease Domain, I know first-hand the influence that EACTS has through our publications, Academy programme, clinical

practice guidelines and the many other facets of work. I want to build on these achievements and explore new ways to deliver value to our members whilst continuing to equip the cardiothoracic community with everything we need to improve outcomes for our patients.”

Read more about Patrick’s plans for EACTS here

Leading quality improvement

Since 2015, the EACTS Quality Improvement Programme (QUIP) has encouraged the improvement of clinical outcomes for patients and promoted the importance of integrating quality improvement initiatives into daily clinical practice. QUIP operates two international databases, the Adult Cardiac Database (ACD) and EUROMACS –the European Registry for Patients with Mechanical Circulatory Support.

What are your primary goals as the new Chair of the QUIP committee?

Edgar Daeter QUIP Committee Chair

Edgar Daeter, cardiothoracic surgeon and medical manager at the Heartcenter Antonius Hospital Nieuwegein in the Netherlands and newly appointed as Chair of the QUIP Committee, sets out his priorities and goals for the Quality Improvement Programme.

Tell us about your experience in delivering quality improvement programmes.

I have managed quality improvement programmes for a number of years. I am currently the Chair of the National Registry of Cardiothoracic Surgeons in the Netherlands, a position I have held for the past six years. Prior to this I headed up Meetbaar Beter, a doctor driven registry that uses patient-relevant outcome measures to improve quality and transparency of care for Dutch patients with heart disease. This project started as an initiative with two hospitals and grew to involve several renowned heart centres, including academic medical centres. In 2017, this registry merged with 2 other Dutch registries to the NHR (Netherlands Heart Registry) which includes all cardiologic and cardio surgical interventions in the Netherlands. I am also the Medical Manager at the Heartcenter Antonius Hospital Nieuwegein in the Netherlands where I serve as the Chair in IPU coronary artery disease.

What is the role of the QUIP Committee?

The QUIP Committee plays an important strategic role in representing the programme’s vision and purpose to EACTS members and to centres and institutions across Europe. Our primary focus is to deliver clinical and research excellence, and help surgeons improve patient outcomes by ensuring the databases are working effectively and meeting the needs of contributors.

The Committee also acts as an advisory group to the EACTS Council regarding quality improvement related activities.

The Chair of the Quality Improvement Programme Committee is a big role. I became Chair at the recent Annual Meeting in Milan and my ambition is to drive the Adult Cardiac Database to become the European Registry of Registries of Cardiac Surgical Data.

The Adult Cardiac Database is an important platform and benchmarking tool, and we are working towards bringing the database to the next stage with upgraded software solutions and professional service to your hospital. We are excited to advance the database tools and will announce the relaunch in 2023.

To reach our goal we are approaching national registries and professional associations across Europe to encourage them to collaborate for the purpose of quality improvement and contribute data to the ACD. We are also expanding our opportunities and looking to consider research requests using the data from the ACD.

There is a huge opportunity to work together on a European level, with a higher quantity of procedures and the ability to share methods and insights from different registries throughout Europe. This also means that participating countries that do not have a national registry can benefit from the experiences of well-established registries elsewhere.

We need to ensure that QUIP and the data we collect continue to meet the needs of our members for the benefit of improving outcomes for patients. I applaud the collaborative and data driven approach from participating centres and registries so far, and very much look forwarding to welcoming more to this excellent Programme.

Find out more about QUIP here

A new generation

Working for all residents

Being a resident can be daunting and challenging at times, but it is important to remember that we are not alone. The Residents Committee aims to bring residents together and ensure that our needs and concerns are addressed. We encourage residents to get in touch with ideas on how we can best support them.

I’m humbled and privileged to be elected Chair of the EACTS Residents Committee. We have a fantastic opportunity to take the committee to new heights, championing the work of residents and inspiring the next generation.

I am passionate about education and training - and the Residents Committee provides an excellent platform to continue this passion. The committee is made up of an amazing group of people. Each member brings a different quality to the team, but we are all driven by the same goal to improve education and training for residents.

Committee goals

Across Europe there are significant variations in the fundamental structure and content of cardiothoracic surgery (CTS) training programmes. We want to see standardised training for residents across Europe, ensuring we all have access to the same high-quality training. Our recently published position paper sets out how we can achieve this vision, based on the experiences of current residents.

In addition to publishing more position papers, we also have exciting plans to develop a National Training Summit, bringing together representatives at a resident level from all European countries to discuss training needs and explore ways to work collaboratively.

I would also urge residents to get involved in the Academy programme’s Case Corner. These sessions are a fantastic opportunity to present at an international level and discuss a complex case with colleagues, future friends and experts. The EJCTS and ICVTS journals have also introduced the Residents Corner article type, which is a place for residents to publish their scientific work and articles related to education and training. We want to champion the great work residents do!

The committee is in a great position thanks to the great work delivered by my predecessor Can Gollmann-Tepeköylü. With the support of my fellow committee members, including our two newest committee members – Soi Avgeridou and Polina Danchenko – we look forward to driving the committee forward and delivering for residents across Europe and beyond.

Learn more about the EACTS Residents Committe here

Nabil Hussein

We want to see standardised training for residents across Europe, ensuring we all have access to the same high-quality training.

Raising Standards through Education and Training

EACTS Case Corner

EACTS Case Corner

Course Directors: A Zientara, London; C Gollmann-Tepeköylü, Innsbruck

Target Audience

Skills Level 1 – Residents in training with the course content closely allied to the EBCTS syllabus.

Overview

EACTS Case Corner has proved a popular addition to the Academy calendar this year, receiving overwhelmingly positive feedback from young surgeons. In the course evaluations, 100% of participants agreed that the course met their expectations, and they would recommend to a freind.

In these sessions, complex cases are presented. All symptoms, patient characteristics and test results are described in detail. Together with the audience, the right treatment decisions are discussed.

Sessions & Dates

Coronary Artery Disease 19 January

Course Directors, Can Gollmann-Tepeköylü & Alicja Zientara, explain how the EACTS Case Corner supports the professional development of Residents and what to look out for in 2023.

Congenital Heart Disease 26 January

Mitral Valve Repair 30 March

Transcatheter Aortic Valve Implantation 20 April

Thoracic Surgery 25 May

Together with the Academy, the EACTS Residents Committee will launch seven new case corner sessions in 2023. Apart from the classic hot topics, there will be four new sessions: congenital heart disease, transcatheter aortic valve implantation, aortic dissection, and mechanical circulatory support.

Aortic Dissection 29 June

Mechanical Circulatory Support 21 September

The very successful online format proved to be a fantastic platform for young surgeons to present an interesting case focusing on the learning objectives based on current literature. Our senior EACTS experts start the discussion afterwards and receive direct questions from the audience, either by unmuting and participating actively, or by online chat. Participants can connect with other residents in the session, creating a “case corner community”.

1 hour session Virtual Meeting

In 2023, residents will also have the chance to submit a case for discussion. Cases are reviewed and rated by a predefined objective scoring system by the members of the Residents Committee and, once accepted, the submitting surgeon will meet with the committee members online and receive guidance in preparation for the case corner session. This is a fantastic opportunity for residents to connect with the Residents Committee, and present their exciting clinical cases to highly renown senior surgeons.

The online format allows the audience to not only watch the presentation, but also directly address questions to the speakers and the high-quality expert panel. Questions are also included in the case presentation and can be solved online creating one of the most interactive courses in the Academy calendar.

Submission for the EACTS Case Corners 2023 is now open:

For the most up to date course details visit www.eacts.org Courses and dates subject to change

Domenico Pagano

Throughout his 30-year career as a first-class cardiothoracic surgeon, Domenico Pagano was driven by an unwavering commitment to improve patient outcomes. Renowned for his expertise in quality improvement, he was passionate about the importance of data to enhance patient care. This was evident in his work as consultant cardiothoracic surgeon at Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in Birmingham, where he established the award-winning Quality and Outcomes Research Unit, and his work at EACTS where he brought fresh energy to quality improvement.

Described by Rafa Sádaba, former EACTS Secretary General, as the ‘heart and soul’ of the QUIP database, Domenico channelled his energy and passion for evidence-based care into the development of a proper European Registry. EUROMACS is now considered the standard for Europe and several countries have mandated reporting outcome data to EUROMACS for ventricular assist device operations.

Born in Pompei in 1962, Domenico’s early years at school in Naples were instrumental in developing his sense of right and wrong. He was proud of the breadth of his education, which included studying Philosophy and Classics, subjects he was planning to return to by retracing the journey of Homer’s Odyssey in retirement.

He attended medical school at the University of Naples before graduating in 1987, writing his graduation thesis on ‘Echo Doppler evaluation of Cardiac Valvular Prostheses’. Whilst

working in cardiovascular surgery in Bologna he met his future wife, Donna, and in 1989 they moved to the UK.

He began working at the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in Birmingham in 1991, where his cardiothoracic career took off. He became a Research Fellow at the University of Birmingham, submitting his thesis on the ‘Identification of hibernating myocardium using PET scans’.

In 1998 he was made Hunterian Professor by the Royal College of Surgeons of England and two years later he was awarded the McCormack Medal for achieving the highest marks in the final cardiothoracic exam and the Ronald Edwards award for best presentation at SCTS.

Leading EACTS

In all aspects of his work, Domenico displayed passion and integrity, qualities that made him the “perfect choice” to become EACTS Secretary General in 2017, according to EACTS Past President Ruggero de Paulis. He describes how Domenico dedicated himself unreservedly to the role, using the platform to ‘raise the bar’ and drive important change both within the organisation and across the cardiothoracic community.

With his characteristic optimism and enthusiasm, Domenico set about professionalising the organisation, for instance bringing in external support to improve governance arrangements.

He guided EACTS through the COVID-19 pandemic which significantly impacted the Association’s flagship event, the EACTS Annual Meeting. Ruggero de Paulis says: “Even during difficult periods Domenico’s optimism was unwavering. He never complained and always had a solution.” Indeed, in 2020, the EACTS Annual Meeting went ahead when many other conferences were cancelled. It was held virtually for the first time, enabling the cardiothoracic community to learn and share experiences online because of COVID restrictions.

After three years in the role, Domenico had to take a step back due to acute health issues, and he later stood down as EACTS Secretary General before the same issue eventually got the better of him.

A strong surgical voice

Domenico’s strength of character and presence helped to bring the Association to the forefront of the cardiothoracic community and give a stronger voice to surgeons. Patrick Myers, EACTS Secretary General, remembers: “Domenico opened up the discussion about the design and interpretation of clinical trials. At the Clinical Trials Update session at the Annual Meeting he brought together diverse people from the heart team to review the data and present different viewpoints. Now, as surgeons, we feel it is normal to speak up if we don’t agree with trial design.” An avid reader and renaissance man, his favourite and oft repeated quote was from cardiologist and Nobel Peace prize laureate Bernard Lown: “Never whisper in the presence of wrong”.

In 2020, the Society of Thoracic Surgeons invited Domenico to give the prestigious Thomas B. Ferguson Lecture at its 56th Annual Meeting. Under the carefully chosen title, “M.E.G.A: Make Evidence Great Again,” he challenged cardiothoracic surgeons to critically appraise data and use evidence to improve patient outcomes and deliver guidelines we can trust.

Never one to shy away from a discussion, his passion for transparency led him to highlight the importance of full disclosure of conflicts of interest on guideline committees. This was controversial and divisive, driven by his determination to ensure heart teams could rely on trusted guidelines and advise their patients on the best treatment options.

Supporting the cardiothoracic community

Domenico was widely respected and admired across the cardiothoracic community and he drew on his own deeply competitive nature to instill nothing but excellence in those he mentored, expecting them always to give 100% to support their patients.

Domenico’s strength of character and presence helped to bring the Association to the forefront of the cardiothoracic community and give a stronger voice to surgeons.

He was an active contributor to cardiothoracic research, publishing many papers during his career. His primary interest was in myocardial metabolism and outcomes.

His ability to apply the latest evidence and a human context to his work ensured he consistently achieved excellent surgical results for his patients. Domenico understood the human impact of his work and he challenged colleagues to always see patients as people with emotions, fears and families. His commitment and drive to enhance patient care and deliver improved outcomes was unwavering.

Domenico was not only a first-class cardiothoracic surgeon but also a supportive colleague, a generous friend and a great host and raconteur. He will be missed by his family, friends and the surgical community.

An edited version of this obituary will also be published in EJCTS.

The 36th EACTS Annual Meeting

Milan was the place to be this October as almost 5,000 people came together from 99 countries for the 36th EACTS Annual Meeting.

With a packed world-class scientific programme featuring over 760 scientific presentations and 67 focus sessions on the latest science and innovation in cardiothoracic surgery, the EACTS Annual Meeting demonstrated, once again, why it is the leading event in the cardiothoracic calendar.

The first full meeting to be held since the COVID-19 pandemic provided a welcome opportunity for delegates to engage with friends and colleagues and develop new relationships that will last a lifetime.

Thought-provoking presentations

One of the most prestigious and anticipated sessions of the Annual Meeting was the Presidential Address given by outgoing EACTS President, Friedhelm Beyersdorf. In his speech, he highlighted the need for today’s surgeons to implement disruptive innovation in the near future in order to deliver new ways to improve patient outcomes and save lives.

We also welcomed Manfred Mueller, Head of Flight Safety at Lufthansa HG, as this year’s honoured guest speaker. His insightful presentation explored how to implement safety strategies from the aviation world to the medical world, sharing knowledge from his 40-year career in aviation.

Friedhelm Beyersdorf

Late breaking clinical trials

In an EACTS Annual Meeting first, there were two dedicated sessions on Late Breaking Clinical Trials this year due to the number and outstanding quality of submissions received.

Delegates had the opportunity to hear the latest results and data from studies designed to make further improvements in outcomes for patients. This included the results of CAST-HF, a potentially practice changing prospective randomised controlled trial exploring cardiac shockwave therapy in patients with ischemic cardiomyopathy and the preliminary results of the first human trial of a device facilitating robotic coronary artery bypass grafting. These fascinating sessions led to some rigorous debate and analysis by our amazing panel of global experts, which included several cardiologists.

Addressing gender balance

Promoting diversity and inclusion is important to EACTS, with a number of new initiatives launched this year to help women surgeons fulfil their educational and career ambitions and support more women in cardiothoracic surgery to take up leadership positions.

As we work to enhance opportunities for women surgeons at the Annual Meeting, we are delighted that over 25% of attendees at the 36th EACTS Annual Meeting were women, with women featuring as presenters and panellists.

The Women in Cardiothoracic Surgery Committee held an empowering focus session, inclusive to both male and female surgeons, which discussed various ways of practicing personal power and learnt how to consciously use their body and spoken language to present themselves in a more powerful way.

+25% WOMEN

Jolanda Kluin, Chair of the Women in Cardiothoracic Committee

A pioneering Techno-College programme

This year’s Annual Meeting kicked off with a fascinating Techno-College demonstrating the latest innovations, emerging trends and techniques in cardiovascular and, this year, thoracic surgery.

Nearly 900 surgeons from across the world welcomed the opportunity to learn more about technological breakthroughs, learn the appropriate use of current and future technologies and view live surgeries, including a demonstration of normothermic arch surgery without circulatory arrest and robotic surgery. The prestigious Techno-College Innovation Award was awarded to Francesco Pollari for his work on the MIC-cannula, a new, patented medical device to improve the outcomes of minimally-invasive cardiac surgery.

Commenting on his win, Francesco said: “I am delighted to win the Techno-College Innovation Award. There is no better platform to showcase this device and seek opportunities to collaborate and partner with medical professionals and industry representatives.”

EACTS LEARNING LAB

Proving popular at this year’s Annual Meeting were the seven specialist training sessions held in the EACTS Learning Lab.

The CT Surgery Resident Showdown was back this year with teams of residents facing off against one another in the ultimate jeopardy-style competition of cardiothoracic knowledge, live on EACTS TV.

Sam Heuts and Jules Olsthoorn from Maastricht University Medical Center were crowned the European Champions in the EACTS TV studio following a nail-biting battle with Alissa Florian and Polina Mantaj from Medical University Graz.

Speaking after his victory, Sam Heuts said: “It’s been a long process and I am very happy that my partner and I were lucky enough to win. In January we will cross the pond to the STS Annual Meeting and compete against the American winners. It’s a great motivation to study and try and beat them in their own territory.”

Jules Olsthoorn spoke of the pair’s tactics, “We went in with an open mind and we got lucky to play the final. Winning the European final feels great. We are looking forward to the world finals – it’s a great opportunity to meet our colleagues the other side of the ocean.

“We will participate on 22 January and have to defend the honour of the EACTS and European societies. We can beat everyone!”

We wish them the very best of luck as they go on to compete against the winning North American team at the 2023 STS Annual Meeting in a bid to be crowned the CT Surgery Masters World Champions.

These hands-on workshops, which included wetlabs, drylabs, simulation and other small practical sessions, gave those attending the chance to learn specialist techniques and draw on the knowledge of some of the world’s most experienced and expert cardiothoracic surgeons.

EACTS would like to thank our Domain, Task Force and Committee members who worked tirelessly to put together this year’s scientific programme.

Sam Heuts and Jules Olsthoorn

EACTS Awards

Congratulations to the award winners at this year’s Annual Meeting. These awards recognise training and research excellence.

CARDIAC YOUNG INVESTIGATOR AWARD

T. Langenaeken, Leuven, Belgium

HANS G BORST JOINT AWARD FOR THORACIC AORTIC SURGERY

I. Chirichilli & F. Irace, Rome, Italy & A. Iyengar, Philadelphia, USA

THORACIC YOUNG INVESTIGATOR AWARD

EACTS/STS AWARD

CONGENITAL YOUNG INVESTIGATOR AWARD

EACTS/GJC-PASCATS EXCELLENCE AWARD

E. Girdauskas, Augsburg, Germany

ALLIED HEALTH RESEARCH AWARD

S. Crotwell, Charlotte, USA

What delegates said about the 37th EACTS Annual Meeting

“This is one of the biggest societies in the world.

Milan is not far from Egypt and it’s a lot closer than going to the United States meetings. It covers all aspects of cardiac surgery so it’s a good way to keep on top of the subject.”

Mohamed Elfiky, Egypt

We look forward to welcoming as many of you as possible to next year’s 37th EACTS Annual Meeting, taking place between 4 – 7 October.

Join us in the beautiful Austrian capital of Vienna to raise the bar and improve patient outcomes.

Abstract submissions will open on 1 February 2023 with registration due to open in the Spring of 2023.

Do you want to be the first to receive updates about the next EACTS Annual Meeting, including venue information, registration details and the scientific programme? Then make sure to stay connected by joining our mailing list or by following us on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn!

Remember, EACTS Members benefit from reduced registration fees for the EACTS Annual Meeting, so if you’re not currently a member, make it your mission to sign up today!

D. Aronowitz, Philadelphia, USA

W. Woo, Seoul, Republic of Korea M. Luehr, Cologne, Germany

After a successful year, the EACTS Academy has launched an exciting 2023 education programme, offering more opportunities to gain valuable hands-on experience and develop the knowledge and skills to support career development and deliver high quality care.

This year over 1,000 people benefitted from attending an Academy course, providing overwhelmingly positive feedback on their experience. The 2023 education programme builds on this success and includes new additions to the calendar as well as updates to existing popular courses to maximise learning opportunities.

Aaron Ranasinghe, Director of the Academy programme, says: “We have worked closely with Domain Chairs to develop these training programmes to ensure we are addressing the most prevalent and important topics in cardiothoracic surgery and meeting the needs of surgeons at all stages of their careers.”

In 2023 the Academy will be extending its reach by offering many courses in a hybrid format. This will ensure courses remain available to everyone regardless of location and circumstance. To improve the experience for those accessing the course remotely EACTS has invested in new software and a camera system.

Aaron continues, “We’ve listened to feedback from our members and those who have previously attended Academy courses. We recognise that there is demand for remote learning, but course attendees also tell us that the hands-on experience and social interaction from in-person learning is also extremely valuable.”

Courses that will be offered in a hybrid format include the hugely popular Fundamentals coronary course with in-person learning taking place in Windsor. These courses are closely allied to the EBCTS syllabus and are therefore hugely beneficial to residents in training.

A high-quality educational programme

Several new courses have been added to the 2023 Academy programme, including an exciting new offer from the Thoracic Disease Domain featuring two courses in Windsor and four webinars.

The 2023 programme also includes the popular online Case Corner sessions, which provide a fantastic opportunity for residents to discuss the best treatment options for a specific complex case alongside experts in the field. Residents are encouraged to submit their cases for discussion. (Find out more about EACTS Case Corner on page 7)

View the 2023 Academy calendar here

ICVTS goes interdisciplinary

GE R Y

This forward thinking new ICVTS will encourage collaboration across multidisciplinary teams in cardiac, thoracic and vascular surgery, by focusing on highly innovative, interdisciplinary research that directly impacts surgical practice within the field. This in turn will help deliver better outcomes for patients.

Advances in healthcare are now driven by interdisciplinary research that covers medical, biomedical, physical, engineering and computer sciences and beyond so it’s important this approach is echoed by EACTS Journals.

Peyman Sardari Nia, Editor in Chief of ICVTS, said: “The Journal aims to bring all those involved in cardiovascular and thoracic research together, focusing on treatment of a disease condition rather than accepting the status quo of researchers conducting research and publishing in different silos on the same pathology”.

Supporting a multi-disciplinary approach

The fundamental reasons behind the name change and relaunch are to acknowledge the fact that patients are increasingly supported by multidisciplinary teams, from surgeons and nurses to anaesthetists and perfusionists, who all work together to address the vital needs and long-term health management of individuals.

Ludwig K. von Segesser, Founding Editor of ICVTS, says: ‘This is a good move because this is how the discipline is evolving – from a single specialty to a multi-disciplinary approach for our patients. People have to work together to bring in their expertise from different views and from different fields. I think that is going to be the future’.

ICVTS has been steadily and successfully evolving since 2002 (as Interactive CardioVascular and Thoracic Surgery) and converted to open access in August 2021.

The new interdisciplinary format will not only strengthen its position within the surgical community, but, crucially, will also highlight research by related disciplines that impact cardiothoracic surgery, which previously may not have been visible to the relevant surgical community.

From 2023, the new journal will focus on the treatment of a disease condition and mirror the changing surgical landscape. Ash Merrifield, EACTS Publications Director, stresses: “It is an important part of my role to ensure that our publications are truly set up for the future and are able to adapt to changes within the

also

INTERDISCIPLINARY CARDIOVASCULAR ANDTHORACIC SU RY

Making an impact

During the 36th EACTS Annual Meeting in Milan, the Editors-in-Chief and Publishing teams of the AATS, STS and EACTS got together to share pizza and ideas to better serve our readers and authors, with the aim of identifying areas where we can work together to reduce some of the pain points for authors and ensure easier, more efficient submission processes across our journals.

Matthias Siepe

Editor-in-Chief – European Journal of Cardio-Thoracic Surgery

Ash Merrifield

EACTS Publications Director

Joanna Chikwe

Editor-in-Chief - The Annals of Thoracic Surgery

John Kerpan

Managing Editor - The Annals of Thoracic Surgery

Highlights from EJCTS, ICVTS and MMCTS

Editor’s Choice

EJCTS 62_4

Perioperative stroke and survival in coronary artery bypass grafting patients: a SWEDEHEART study

Kristjan Jonsson, Mikael Barbu, Susanne J Nielsen, et al

ICVTS 35_4

Long-term survival of single versus bilateral internal mammary artery grafting in patients under 70 Armando Abreu, José Máximo, Adelino Leite-Moreira

Latest articles:

EJCTS

G. Alexander Patterson

Editor-in-Chief - The Journal of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery

Spencer McGrath

Director of Scientific PublicationsAmerican Association for Thoracic Surgery

Sleeve lobectomy in patients with non-small-cell lung cancer: a report from the European Society of Thoracic Surgery database 2021 Michel Gonzalez, Louis-Emmanuel Chriqui, Herbert Décaluwé, et al

ICVTS

Early postoperative organ dysfunction is highly associated with the mortality risk of patients with type A aortic dissection Ming-Hao Luo, Jing-Chao Luo, Yi-Jie Zhang, et al

MMCTS Tutorial

Surgical correction of partial anomalous left superior pulmonary venous connection to the innominate vein

Luigi Di Pasquale, Olivia Jäger, Robert Cesnjevar and Hitendu Dave

MMCTS Case Report

Off-label transapical beating-heart transcatheter mitral valve replacement in severe mitral annular calcification Tillmann Kerbel, Markus Mach, Anna Bartunek, Iuliana Coti, Phillip E. Bartko and Martin Andreas

Fellowships

Fellowships 2022-23 announced

We are delighted to announce the successful recipients of the 2022-23 Francis Fontan Fund Fellowship programme.

A high number of exceptional applications were received this year, reinforcing the programme’s prestigious reputation amongst the cardiothoracic community. This year’s programme includes seven new fellowships, offering more opportunities for surgeons to expand their knowledge and gain invaluable experience working with leading surgeons in their fields.

Congratulations to the following members:

Sara Ranchordás

Elena Roselló-Díez, Omar Jarral, Karel Van Praet, Endrit Shala

Nicolai Bayer, Matheus Helunay, Humberto Juarez, Hector Olaya, Benjamin Omoregbee, Mostafa Tolba

Simon Duggan

Bilal Kirmani

Atrial Fibrillation Fellowship Sponsored by AtriCure

OPCAB sponsored by Medtronic MICS / CABG Canada sponsored by Medtronic

Ronald Manuel Estrada Mendoza

Quality & Outcomes at MSTCVS

Emre Yasar

OBCAB - Extended in partnership with Medtronic

Valentina Mescola, David Zapata

TSF/FFF International Traveling Fellowship

Robotic Surgery - Cardiac in partnership with Medtronic

Laura Besola

VATS

Iars van Middendorp, Sara Ricciardi

Ukrainian Support Fellowship

This year EACTS launched the Ukrainian Support Fellowship to enable trainees impacted by the conflict in Ukraine to continue their surgical education.

Hosted by the Department of Cardiovascular Surgery at Hospital Clínic de Barcelona, this Fellowship provides an opportunity for a trainee surgeon to engage in daily clinical practices along with the staff physicians, residents and fellows and experience holistically all aspects related to surgical care, from preoperative assessment in the outpatient clinic, to surgical management, intensive postoperative care and back to the outpatient clinic.

Polina Danchenko is the first recipient of the Ukrainian Support Fellowship. She recounts her experience to date.

“I’m currently taking part in the Francis Fontan Fund Fellowship in Barcelona, under the supervision of Dr. Eduard Quintana. His support has been invaluable, providing

Clinical Trials & Statistics (UCL Masters)

Vincenzo Caruso

Commenting on this year’s applications, Professor Ruggero de Paulis, Chair of the Francis Fontan Fund, said: “We have received an unprecedented number of outstanding applications to the Francis Fontan Fund this year – an increase of 80% in applications received compared to 2021. With 14 Fellowship Programmes to choose from I am proud to Chair the prestigious Francis Fontan Fund. It presents unparalleled opportunities for young surgeons to advance their education and careers in cardiothoracic surgery, learning from experts in their fields in some of the best institutions worldwide.

“It is very encouraging to see so many young surgeons from across Europe and beyond recognise the benefits of taking part in the Fellowship programme and being part of our global cardiothoracic community.”

Application for the 2023-24 Francis Fontan Fellowship programme will open in Spring 2023. Click here for more information about the programme.

high-quality specialty training as well as introducing me to new technologies, like minimally invasive, robotic surgery, as well as complex reconstructive procedures which are just outstanding, it is a dream come true. I always say I’m kind of in the surgical Disneyland in Barcelona.

“The Department of Cardiovascular Surgery does all kinds of surgical procedures and interventions, including minimally invasive and robotic surgery. This allows me to see the full spectrum of cardiac surgery interventions. I have also had an opportunity to spend time in the operating room, learning basic skills such as harvesting the atrial and venous grafts, cannulating for bypass, ECMO, donor heart retrieval and at the same time see top surgeons performing extraordinary challenging cases.

“For a trainee resident like me, it’s a perfect setting to see the whole of cardiac surgery whilst being mentored and trained by specialists.

“I will take this knowledge back to my clinic in Ukraine to help other residents who are in need of education and training. The war has limited the chances for young fellows so the techniques and learnings that I am bringing back home will be very valuable.”

Anton Pechenenko, Maksym Rzhanyi

Ukrainian Support

Marcio Rufino Barbosa Jr, Laura Adriana Torrico Davila

TSF/FFF/LACES International Travelling

Join us next year in Vienna, Austria for the 37th EACTS Annual Meeting. For 2023 you can expect robust debate and discussion led by global experts, the latest technological advances on display and an opportunity to share knowledge and socialise with your peers from around the world.

As the largest and most exciting event in the cardiothoracic calendar we will be raising the bar as we showcase scientific excellence and insights, along with the very latest innovations in cardiothoracic surgery. We hope to see you there! www.eacts.org