Euroanaesthesia 2007

Author

Jennifer M Hunter, MB ChB PhD FRCA

Chairman

Scientific Programme Committee, ESA

University Department of Anaesthesia

Clinical Sciences, Liverpool, UK

[email protected]

Euroanaesthesia 2007 takes ESA members to the beautifully elegant Bavarian city of Munich for the first time this year. From June 9-12, 2007, this glorious city will host the ESA annual meeting. The German Society of Anaesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine (DGAI), chaired by their President, Professor Hugo Van Aken, is our host. Professor Van Aken leads the National Organising Committee for the meeting, which includes Eberhard Kochs, Klaus van Ackern and Andreas Hoeft.

Scientific Program

Yet again, intensive care medicine is an important part of the scientific program. Our program reflects the international nature of ESA, with speakers from the United Kingdom, Germany, Turkey, France, the Netherlands, Denmark, Belgium, and more. Professor Gernot Marx is responsible to the Scientific Programme Committee (SPC) for this part of the meeting. Professor Marx will give a refresher course lecture on the kidney in sepsis, and Figen Esen will cover titration of fluid loading and vasopressor in septic shock. Claude Martin will give an update on selective digestive decontamination, and Benoit Vallet will detail the latest challenges of postoperative pneumonia. Ethical issues related to the critically ill will be addressed in refresher courses on “Medical Professionalism in Anaesthesia and Critical Care” (Beloucif); “Communication and Consent in Anaesthesiology and Critical Care” (Marie Shelly); and “Ethical Implications of Major Catastrophies” (Pollard).

One of the most interesting aspects of the intensive care program in Munich will be “Traumatic brain injury,” a joint symposium with the Neurosciences Subcommittee of the SPC, which is chaired by Basil Matta. Contributors from throughout Europe will argue whether severe head injury should be dealt with at Level

1 Trauma centers or in community hospitals (Oakley, UK); consider the management of intracranial hypertension (Pannen, Germany); discuss neuromonitoring and neuroprotection (Kirkpatrick, UK); and consider the use of sedative drugs after brain trauma (Cremer, Netherlands). Other symposia will cover recent advances in hemodynamic monitoring, the rationale for crystalloids or colloids and mechanical ventilation.

Yet again in 2007, management of critical events using “live simulation” will doubtless be a popular aspect of the Euroanaesthesia meeting – remember to book your tickets for these very popular workshops early to avoid disappointment. Another thought-provoking workshop, organized by the Evidence based Practice and Quality Assurance Subcommittee, chaired by Andrew Fairley- Smith, will address “Evidence into practice in critical care: The Cochrane Anaesthesia Review Group.” Topics will include Pulmonary Artery Flotation Catheters, (Sheila Harvey) and AT3 in Sepsis (Afshari). A symposium on “Goals and Monitoring End Points in Anaesthesia and Intensive Care” will be chaired by Buhre and will include contributions from Singer, Gotz and De Bacher.

The Pharmacology Subcommittee of the SPC, chaired by Meistelman, has arranged a workshop on TCI for ICU Sedation led by the European expert, Tom Schnider. This too will be popular – get your ticket early. This subcommittee has also organized a refresher course on “Drug Interactions in Anaesthesia and Intensive Care Medicine” given by Benoit Plaud. Dan Benhamou will chair a symposium on “The Pregnant Patient in the ICU” – an exceptional challenge we all meet on occasion.

Draeger Prize

For the first time in 2007, the ESA will award a Draeger Prize. The winner will be announced in Munich. This prize is to be awarded for the best article published in a peer-reviewed journal in 2006 by a European intensive care or anesthetic department on an intensive care topic. The award will be for €10,000, made annually for three years. The ESA is most grateful to Draeger for sponsoring this new award.

Abstracts

Abstract sessions at Euroanaesthesia 2007 will take on a new format. From now on, the abstract’s first author will no longer make a short, verbal presentation using audiovisual aids. Instead, first authors will need to stand by their posters during their allocated session and answer questions from the chairmen of the sessions and the audience. Authors will be encouraged to provide a handout summarizing their abstract on a single A4 sheet. By changing the format of the abstract sessions, the SPC hope to attract a larger audience to each session.

There is plenty of scientific material to attract intensivists (if they need to be tempted) to attend the 2007 Euroanaesthesia meeting in Munich. I look forward to seeing you again there, at the spacious, bright and convenient International Congress Center, built on the old airport site. Have a good 2007!

Jennifer Hunter

SPC Chair, ESA