The 17th Semmelweis Symposium was held on November 27-29, 2008. With the motto “Building bridges from basics to invasive cardiology” international and Hungarian participants exchanged views on the latest developments in cardiology. The symposium coincided with the opening ceremony of the new MRI laboratory of the Heart Center of Semmelweis University, the organizer of the event. Such a laboratory is unique in Hungary and is among the latest ones in Europe. The extraordinarily fast MRI equipment is specifically applicable to reveal cardiovascular and neural bias.
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On-line case presentations from the Heart Center provided extraordinary experience for the participants for whom this has been a great opportunity to join the operative work running in the clinic. |
Semmelweis Symposium 2008
It was now the 17th time that Semmelweis Symposium presenting diverse medical topics has been organized. This year the topic of Semmelweis Symposium was cardiology, and was organized by the Heart Center of Semmelweis University. The official language of the conference was English, and its motto was „Building bridges from basics to invasive cardiology”. The presentations were located at the Városmajor Clinical Center of Semmelweis University and the nearby imposing Barabás Villa Conference Hall that has recently been renewed. The papers of the Symposium were meant for each academic member and student of our University as well as for all those who were interested in the novel results of cardiology. The prestige of the program was raised by the fact that the Rector of our University, Professor Tivadar Tulassay and the Hungarian Society of Cardiology were both patrons of the Symposium.
Scientific program
The program of Semmelweis Symposium was preceded by the opening ceremony of the new MRI laboratory of the Heart Center of Semmelweis University. Such a laboratory is unique in Hungary and is among the latest ones in Europe. The extraordinarily fast MRI equipment is specifically applicable to reveal cardiovascular and neural bias.
The scientific program of Semmelweis Symposium 2008 touched upon all the current issues of cardiology. One of the emphasized topics of this Symposium was heart failure. Beside its pathophysiological background, also its clinical therapeutic solutions such as heart transplantation and artificial heart implantation applied by patients in utterly grievous condition were discussed. Another significant issue was atherosclerosis that is thought of the endemic of our age and it is the major cause of heart attacks. An additional accentuated field was that of the electrophysiological examinations and non-medication treatment of arrhythmias, the primary pathological factors of sudden cardiac death. In a separate session the potential diagnostic and therapeutic methods of future cardiology were discussed: cardiovascular genetics and stem cell therapy. In each session both foreign and Hungarian professionals of the international frontline, many of them arriving from the US and Western European countries, discussed the current stance of cardiovascular science.
On-line case presentations
On-line case presentations from the Heart Center provided extraordinary experience for the participants for whom this has been a great opportunity to join the operative work running in the clinic. Catheter based diagnostics and treatment protocols, dilatation of coronary arteries, and stent implantation of patients with acute heart attack were life broadcasted on-line. During the presentations from the cardiac electrophysiological laboratory catheter treatment of patients with arrhythmia, the destruction of detrimental cardiac tissue responsible for arrhytmia after mapping was followed by the audience. During the interventions participants of the conference were able to join the decision making mechanisms in therapy and could receive answers directly from the interventional cardiologist and the invited lecturer.
Besides the operative broadcasts, the opportunity for the on-line introduction of one of the most novel cardiologic diagnostic process, the multi-slice Cardio-CT examination was provided. As recently it has been proven, Cardio-CT may exclude coronary artery disease effecting significant lumen obstruction with similar results to invasive catheterization.
The Semmelweis Bridge project
This year Semmelweis Symposium was also an opening event of a network creating, cardiology-focused initiative called the Semmelweis Bridge Project, including 14 world-famous universities. Semmelweis University has applied in international cooperation for support of its projects ranging from basic science to applied research of innovative research teams by the National Development Agency. The primary goal of Semmelweis Bridge Project is the formation of an international research group with numerous members that can execute the examination of the different causes of heart failure in its complexity. For this, it integrates the concerned research centers of universities and creates acknowledged international research cooperation involving other concerned universities and enterprises.
The Semmelweis Bridge Project aims at adapting international research experiences in Hungary. That is the reason for having chosen the 17th Semmelweis Symposium to be the opening event of the project.
A photo gallery about the three days of the event is presented on the homepage of Semmelweis Symposium 2008 (www.kardiologia.hu/symposium). Moreover, on-line video-presentation of the lectures will be added in the near future.
