UVa Team Invited to Prestigious Real-Time Cardiovascular Demonstration
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va., Oct. 25, 2006 - Teams of UVa radiologists and surgeons under the leadership of Radiology Chair Dr. Michael Dake participated in a worldwide, real-time video broadcast of a cardiovascular surgery case on Oct. 24. This less-invasive (endovascular) surgery was performed as part of the TCT 2006 Conference (Transcatheter Cardiovascular Therapeutics), and 12 countries participated.
At the time of surgery, 3,200 specialists gathered at the TCT main arena in Washington, D.C., and watched the surgery as it unfolded in Charlottesville, and UVa experts treated a patient with a thoracic (chest area) aortic aneurysm. This operation was also beamed by satellite transmission to thousands of doctors worldwide as a learning experience.
"It was prestigious to be one of the few teams invited to perform a live surgical case that was broadcast in the main arena," Dr. Dake says. "This is an unparalleled opportunity for doctors to learn and share in their specialty."
This year, only 24 of the more than 100 live cases were beamed into the main arena of physicians. The UVa team participated in other surgical live cases during the TCT meeting. Other countries participating in the worldwide case transmission included Germany, France, Israel, China, England, Australia, Canada, Brazil, Italy, Korea and the Netherlands.
To learn more about this surgery, please contact Eric Huffman at 434-982-6299. DVD video footage and photographs of the procedure as it was beamed worldwide are available.