EACTS Domain Updates

Congenital Heart Disease Domain

One of the most important roles for members of the EACTS Domains and Task Forces is developing the scientific programme for the Annual Meeting. We want to ensure the programme excites and educates, addressing the most topical subjects in cardiothoracic surgery.

Members of the Congenital Heart Disease Domain recently came together at the EACTS programme meeting in Paris to agree the key sessions for the EACTS 37th Annual Meeting taking place in October. This includes addressing some new areas that we haven’t previously included in the programme such as ‘Borderline Left Ventricle’, ‘Hybrid for Hypoplastic left heart syndrome’ and an update on CCTGA (Congenitally corrected transposition of the great arteries) management.

We are also planning sessions that have been well-received at past meetings such as innovations in paediatric and congenital cardiac surgery, which will be an opportunity to learn more about the latest technology and techniques. We also plan to run a session with the Residents Committee on surgical training.

In addition to the EACTS Annual Meeting we are offering EACTS Academy courses aimed at both residents and more experienced surgeons. Earlier this month we ran the Fundamentals in Congenital Heart Disease, a virtual course designed for residents preparing for their EBCTS exams.

We are also running a level 3 course in Krakow later this year which will cover all aspects of first step single ventricle palliation. Don’t forget to sign up here for email updates about the latest EACTS Academy courses to find out more.

Jürgen Hörer, Chair

Thoracic Disease Domain

The Thoracic Disease Domain has been busy following a very strong and successful programme at the 36th EACTS Annual Meeting in Milan last year. Our activity included a thoracic interactive webinar in December that involved a series of expert lectures and case presentations. This was very well received and I hope to repeat the format in the future.

I’m pleased to announce the formation of two new task forces within the Thoracic Disease Domain, one on Solitary Pulmonary Nodules and the other dedicated to robotic thoracic surgery. These task forces will be increasingly busy over the next few months in terms of educational output amongst other projects, and I hope that more of our members, especially amongst the residents, will have the opportunity to get involved. In fact, the first event in the 2023 calendar year was a webinar last month delivered by the Robotic Task Force. The lectures were excellent, as was the subsequent discussion and online Q&A. The next webinar will be on Lung Volume Reduction Surgery on June 14th, that will include endobronchial and surgical strategies, and an MDT session.

A face-to-face Academy thoracic course is being held in Windsor next month from 17 – 19 April, with the option to attend online for those unable to travel. This is very much focused towards residents and follows the European Board syllabus.

Of course, there are lots of things going on behind the scenes, and I look forward to updating you over the next few months. First and foremost, preparations are already underway for this year’s Annual Meeting in Vienna in October, which will be here before you know it.

As always, I am incredibly grateful to my friends and colleagues within the Thoracic Domain whose hard work makes my role much easier.

Richard Milton, Chair

The work of the Acquired Cardiac Disease Domain is supported by 14 task forces, bringing together experts in different specialties.

We were delighted to welcome several new members to our task forces recently following a formal nomination process. Members were encouraged to self-nominate for a place on their preferred task force and we received over 200 highquality applications. Successful candidates were selected based on their expertise and experience in each specialty.

The new nomination procedure aims to encourage more members to take an active role in EACTS’ domains and task forces. Membership of each task force is staggered so there will be further opportunities to join a task force over the coming years. I would like to thank outgoing members for their valued contributions.

The domain and task force chairs came together in Paris recently for the first Annual Meeting programme committee meeting. We look forward to sharing more details of the exciting scientific programme we have planned for the 37th EACTS Annual Meeting.

Filip Casselman, Chair

Vascular Disease Domain

Members of the Vascular Disease Domain and the Chairs of our associated task forces held a very productive meeting last month in Paris to discuss the scientific programme for the 37th EACTS Annual Meeting. We look forward to sharing more details in due course.

We continue to work closely with the Academy programme to develop training courses that deliver hands-on experience and develop knowledge and skills across a range of topics prevalent to vascular disease. Our popular Fundamentals in Aortic Surgery course recently took place at EACTS House in Windsor and was also available online for attendees unable to join us in person. The programme covered the major aspects of aortic surgery and guidance was given to those attendees wishing to embark upon an endovascular programme. For those in Windsor we had 5 hands-on stations, from the aortic root to the arch to endovascular treatments. We would like to thank all the attendees, faculty and Industry partners who helped make this course a success once again.

Our first webinar of 2023 explored aortic dissection and feedback* has been very positive, with over 90% of participants rating the webinar excellent or good and describing the course as a good investment. The second online webinar, which takes place on 11 May, is focused on Connective Tissue Disease and specifically decision making in root and ascending aortic disease. More information about this webinar can be found here

*of those attendees who completed the evaluation.

Konstantinos Tsagakis, Chair