1999 Fall Meeting

The 19th Semi-Annual MIRS Meeting and Seminar was held on October 9, 1999 at Big Cedar Lodge, Ridgedale, MO. Despite uncooperative weather on the meeting day, attendance at the conference was excellent. The featured speakers at the fall meeting were Dr. Kieran Murphy, interventional neuroradiologist at the Johns Hopkins Medical Center, Baltimore, Maryland, and Dr. Mahmood Razavi, interventional radiologist from Stanford University Medical Center. The topics presented were . . .

• Vertebroplasty
• Extracranial Embolization
• Tissue Plasminogen Activator (rTPA) for Transcatheter Arterial and Venous Thrombolysis
• Stent-Grafts for the Treatment of Arterial Disease

For the afternoon session, Dr Razavi conducted a Practicum for Fabrication of Stent-Grafts by Hand. Many of our corporate sponsors graciously provided the Society with materials for the practicum that included techniques of stent-graft fabrication using Palmaz stents, Gianturco Z-stents, and WallStents with Impra graft material. Interest in the practicum was so great that the case presentation session was suspended.

CME Accreditation

The Spring meeting was approved for 6 hours of category 1 CME credit for physicians through the Shawnee Mission Medical Center. Allied Health CE accreditation was obtained through other sources and CE certificates for nurses and technologists were distributed at the meeting. Physicians' CME certificates should be in the mail within the next month or two. If you do not received your certificate, please contact us via the MIRS feedback connection or e-mail cme@mirs.org.

Election of Officers

Dr. Phil Johnson stepped down after completing his tenure as president of the Society, but will continue as a director of the Society for the time being. Dr. Brian Turley begins his tenure as MIRS President for 2000. Dr. Robert A. Wood advances to become the Society's new Vice-President, and Dr. Pat Sweeney of Springfield, MO won unanimous election to the position of MIRS Secretary Treasurer for the coming year. Drs. Johnson, Turley, Wood and Sweeney will form the new MIRS executive council.

Other Society Business

Venues for future meetings were discussed. A proposal to set the Spring 2000 meeting in Texas was declined by the membership. A variety of other locations in the 4-state area are being considered for the Spring 2000 conference. The membership voted to return to Big Cedar Lodge for the Fall 2000 meeting.

A proposal to change the meeting format to a single two-day meeting each year was voted down in favor of the current arrangements.

A variety of topics for future meetings were discussed and the executive committee will pursue the recommendations offered with several speakers. Among the topics suggested were hepatic chemoembolization, promotion of interventional radiology practice, and medicolegal issues.

The financial position of the organization was discussed. The Society is in sound financial condition with sufficient reserves for the next fiscal year. No increase in dues or fees is contemplated.

Dr. Brian Turley is looking into obtaining CME accreditation for our future meetings through the SCVIR.

Many members have not yet completed a physician's profile for the on-line MIRS Physician Listings. All active physician members are encouraged to participate in this no-cost service. You can obtain the Internet address of the application by sending an e-mail request to profiles@mirs.org. Type request form in the e-mail subject field. The application must be filed on-line.

In the course of their day-to-day practice, members encounter a wealth of interesting and important case material. All members are encouraged to submit cases and technical reports to Interventional Rounds. If you have an article you would like to contribute please e-mail us at editor@mirs.org.