EAU16 Congress Newsletter Sunday 13 March

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European Urology Today

EUT Congress News

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31st Annual Congress of the European Association of Urology

Sunday, 13 March 2016

Munich, 11-15 March 2016

Plenary debates: a critical look on standard therapies From functional urology to andrology, experts re-examine evidence By Loek Keizer Challenging established wisdom and standard therapies was the central theme in the first Plenary Session with EAU Guidelines Office chair Prof. James N’Dow (GB) underscoring the point that every urologists’ responsibility as a practitioner is to take each patient’s individual care needs into account. Non-adherence must of course be justifiable, only done with consent of the patient and strictly documented. The session was chaired by N’Dow and by Joan Palou (ES), Chairman of the European School of Urology (ESU) who both led the discussion and debates among the invited experts. Several speakers took a critical look at various issues such as managing ureteral stones using case discussions to trigger the exchange of insights and clinical experience. The session also featured the American Urological Association (AUA) Lecture on “Testosterone Therapy” with a personal narrative by Dr. Abraham Morgentaler (US). (See Page 3) Ureteral stone management and MET The first topic took up the opposing results of

the existing meta-analysis for the use of MET or medical expulsive therapy (benefit), and those of recent high-quality, double-blinded studies (no benefit, even harm) from the UK , Australia and the USA. The resulting dilemma for the EAU Guidelines offices was laid bare in the following discussion between Prof. Christian Seitz (AT), who defended the Guidelines’ standpoint, and Prof. Samuel McClinton (GB) who seriously challenged prior evidence and continued recommendation of MET with the use of alpha blockers. McClinton: “It’s largely a methodological problem: Is one good study good enough to overturn the meta-analysis of multiple weaker studies? Now it’s up to the EAU Guidelines to grade the evidence and re-evaluate earlier recommendations. Old evidence keeps alpha blockers in the Guidelines; another point is that as urologists we may have grown too comfortable in prescribing tamsulosin. I’m hopeful that the EAU Guidelines will be taking these new trials on board in the coming years.”

Chapple: ‘A streamlined, fully engaged EAU’ Rassweiler and Van Kerrebroeck elected

Session chairs Profs. Palou and N’Dow share a light moment at Plenary Session 1

Both McClinton and Seitz agreed that small stones (<5mm) have a high expulsion rate, and probably do not need the prescription of alpha blockers. However, the debate remained regarding their efficacy with larger stones, where further high-quality studies are required.

Seitz reiterated the recommendation will remain optional for larger stones in the foreseeable future. “We cannot recommend it any more for smaller stones or for pain relief medication. These new trials will naturally be assessed and incorporated in future updates of the EAU Guidelines.”

Live surgery at EAU16 By Constance de Koning The Live Surgery Session gave congress participants a glimpse of modern technology and their applications, and how these new procedures may impact current treatments.

By Joel Vega Organised by the EAU Section of Uro-Technology (ESUT), in cooperation with the EAU Robotic Urology Section (ERUS) and the EAU Section of Urolithiasis (EULIS), Session Chair Prof. Jens Rassweiler (DE) said the extensive and varied session consisted of a A big audience at the Live Surgery Session wide range of percutaneous, endo-urological, laparoscopic, and robotic-assisted procedures which techniques. 3D for instance, which has been around all featured the latest technologies. for a considerable time, has significantly improved in quality; the next step is now ultra HD,” he said. “Live surgery at EAU16 is a continuation of what we have done in 2015, as we have become more Regarding the future, Rassweiler is convinced this will experienced and acquired a routine with these new be a very exciting era due to new robots.

Challenges require a fully engaged and streamlined organization and the European Association of Urology (EAU) will need to restructure both its short and long-term strategies to keep up with modern demands and respond to the needs of its members and the urological community. “There are always challenges and we have a road ahead of us and this requires us to evaluate things, improve and restructure if we are to achieve our goals and stay fully on track,” said EAU Secretary General Prof. Chris Chapple (UK) yesterday during the General Assembly Meeting.

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Chapple also noted that economic pressures in the world have an impact on EAU activities which prompts the organisation to prioritise and invest on the most key and crucial projects that will ultimately serve its members and forward the cause of urology. EAU Treasurer Prof. Manfred Wirth (DE) also reiterated the call for investing on key projects which both he and Chapple said are needed to ensure the future of urology. These projects include educational training, research, meetings, publications and guidelines creation, among many others. Structuring the organization also leads to changes within the ranks of executive board members. During the meeting, Prof. Jens Rassweiler (DE) was elected as the new chairman of the EAU Section Office, while Prof. Philip Van Kerrebroeck (BE) took over from Dirk Schultheiss as the new chair of the EAU History Office. Prof. Hein Van Poppel (BE) was re-elected by majority vote as the Adjunct Secretary General for Education. Sunday, 13 March 2016

Voting at the General Assembly

The EAU will also actively pursue consistent contacts and engagement not only with other medical institutions but also politically such as the European Commission since it expects European-wide regulations to heavily impact on medical communities and professional associations. Guidelines creation, educational training and publications will remain top priorities of the association while contacts with national societies in Europe will be boosted in tandem with the EAU’s growing ties with international and regional urology groups based outside the region.

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