Brigham
Volume XIV, No. 3 • May /June 2006
and
W o m e n ’ s H o s p i ta l , H a r v a r d M e d i c a l S c h o o l
http://etherweb.bwh.harvard.edu/record
To Have and To Hold
BWH Biomedical Engineering
—10 Things You Always Wanted to Know
by Lawrence Tsen, M.D.
“To lose a brother is to lose someone with whom you can
share the experience of growing old, who is supposed to
bring you a sister-in-law and nieces and nephews, creatures
to people the tree of your life and give it new branches.
by Evelyn Fan, M.H.Sc., Clinical Engineer
1. What Is the Vision and Purpose of Biomedical Engineering?
The Director of Partners Biomedical Engineering, Dr. Jeff
Cooper, is well known for his work in anesthesia patient
safety. Our mission statement is “It is our goal that no
patient
is harmed by the application of a medical device
To lose your mother…well, that is like losing the sun above you.”
within our Partners’ sphere of influence.”
—Yann Martel, Life of Pi
We accomplish this through:
rom the first flicker of morning consciousness
Evaluation of Technology: Our engineers work to underuntil sleep steals back into our nighttime grey matstand the use model of clinical practice in the hospital,
ter, we seemingly have every moment occupied. We’re
and to match market technology for safe and efficacious
locked in the Sisyphusian struggle of pushing too many
application.
tasks into too little time. The modern-day hospital environment pressurizes this process by a cacophony of patient and Scheduled Maintenance: We check medical equipment at
regular intervals to prevent future problems and to ensure
provider needs—chirping monitors, epileptic beepers, and
angrily reproducing emails. A recent event in our Anesthe- devices are safe to use.
sia/Brigham family, however, should make us reflect more
On-Call Response: We assist clinicians with problems
deeply on the heroic struggles taking place around us; we
while devices are in clinical use.
are all exposed, more than in any other career path, to the
Equipment Repair: We repair devices when malfunctions
very real tension between sickness and health; birth and
occur so that they function properly and can be put back
death; presence and absence.
into service.
continued on page „
To lose your father is to lose the one whose
guidance and help you seek, who supports you
like a tree trunk supports its branches.
F
Features
To Have and To Hold
—Lawrence Tsen
BWH Biomedical Engineering
—Evelyn Fan
Departments
News & Updates
Academic Activities & Achievements
Publications
Lectures
Regular Rounds: By working with clinical staff to better
understand the use model of devices, we strive to prevent
problems before they occur.
Education: We work with clinical staff to educate them on
the safe and proper use of medical devices.
Device Recall/Alerts & Safety Reports: We follow up with
manufacturers on medical device recalls/ alerts reported by
the FDA and other sources, and perform investigations to
ensure devices are safe for staff and patients.
In short, BWH Biomedical Engineering strives to provide
technology solutions that advance the care and safety of
patients, while making sure that equipment is safe for clinical staff to use.
continued on page „
The Anesthesia Record • May/June 2006
To Have and to Hold (from page )
Without rubbing the philosopher’s stone too hard, if
you were not able to return tomorrow, how would your
colleagues, friends, and family members remember you?
Would they comment on the many things that overwhelmed your schedule, or would they share what you did
for them, as well as for others? Excluding patients, where
our involvement is partially mandated by our working relationship, have your actions today affected the life of someone else… a spouse, a child, a colleague, a student, a cashier,
or a random person? Would the other person acknowledge
your action(s)? And would their reactions be positive?
The Nobel Prize–winning author J.M. Coetzee, as a
15-year old boy in Cape Town, South Africa, mentioned
an afternoon in his family’s garden when “everything
changed.” The philosopher Martin Buber stepped away
from the brink of suicide through a suddenly gained insight
on human existence. What was responsible for these lifealtering transitions? —Johann Sebastian Bach. More specifically, listening to the 24 keyboard preludes and fugues
in all of the major and minor scales which he composed
in 1722 as The Well-Tempered Clavier. When listened to
intensely, the “character” Bach found in each note can be
experienced as solace; this isolated resting place was experienced to such an extent by the pianist and composer Robert
Schumann that he advised all musicians to sample these
pieces as their daily bread. And Goethe, experiencing these
Bach pieces for the first time, said “It is as if the eternal harmony were conversing within itself, as it may have done in
the bosom of God just before the creation of the world.”
“Have you made a
goal-directed commitment
to a colleague?”
Alas, only precious few of us are virtuosos able to toss
the values of symmetry, transparency, and grace and end
up with a masterpiece certain to move others. Thankfully,
positive outcomes only rarely need to evolve from masterpieces; in most cases, however, such results require sacrifice
and risk. Enabling such outcomes for others involves the
sacrifice of your precious time and invokes the risk that the
intended result may not occur. The basis of these outcomes
however, begins with a commitment and an agreement on
what the desired outcome should be.
When was the last time you made a commitment to
someone, other than your spouse or significant other? Have
you made a goal-directed commitment to a colleague? Such
relationships are profoundly rewarding for both participants, and can help encourage more such relationships;
ultimately, they make our department and hospital an
even better place. Examples of commitments made with
colleagues include initiating a research project, inviting
participation into a professional committee or group, or
improving lecturing skills. Among individuals with similar
skill sets, it can mean dividing work so everyone goes home
“Measurable goals allow
you to assess your progress,
stay on track and inspire
you to continue.”
at a reasonable time, working on weekends to accommodate a colleague’s more difficult home schedule, or helping
a colleague find a more optimal job situation. These activities may simply be called “helping,” but I believe they go
beyond that; they represent an ongoing, committed process
of attempting to ensure positive outcomes with and for
your colleague, even when it’s neither convenient nor of
direct value to you.
When working with others, it is particularly important
to acknowledge the goals of your commitment; establishing “SMART” goals, which I have altered to mean Specific,
Measurable, Actionable, Realistic, and Time-based, may be
of value. Specific goals involve the “who, what, where, when,
and why” questions; instead of a general “I want to get in
better shape,” it’s a “I will install an elliptical trainer in my
basement and work out 3 times a week at 4 a.m. to improve
my cardiovascular health.” Measurable goals allow you
to assess your progress, stay on track and inspire you to
continue. Actionable goals contain items that can be physically acted upon, often in a step-wise fashion, for instance,
“What can I do today, or next time, to bring this project
closer to completion?” Realistic goals incorporate you and
your colleague’s attitudes, abilities, skills, and the capacity
to reach the desired outcome. Finally, time-based goals are
those that have a pre-defined calendar for completing the
task.
SMART goal-oriented commitments with colleagues can
accomplish a number of direct and indirect outcomes. Life
will hopefully become more meaningful, allowing us to be
more like Bach, and less like the case of Ivan Ilych Golovin,
a fictitious high court judge in St. Petersburg. In the Death
of Ivan Ilych, Tolstoy tells us that Golovin lives a carefree
life which is “most simple and most ordinary…and therefore, most terrible”; he has squandered his life by pursuing
the insubstantial. Only when a mysterious and growing
terminal pain enters his life does Golovin begin to reexamine his life, his actions in the past and the people around
him.
Let us not wait until a catastrophe absconds with our
health before we begin working with others in a meaningful, committed, goal-oriented way. Instead, let us appreciate that the sands of time are shifting quickly, and that the
time to improve our lives, and others’, is now. In this way,
perhaps the life that we lead will truly be a masterpiece
capable of inspiration. F
Discography:
Glenn Gould, piano: The Well-Tempered Clavier. Sony,
1963-65; reissued 1993. Regarded as a laser-like etching of Bach’s musical lines, with a flood of light and
quirkiness.
Daniel Barenboim, piano: The Well-Tempered Clavier,
Book 1. Warner Classics, 2004. Considered a “romantic
interpretation,” this recording may not sit well with
purists, but is nonetheless a warmer, and enjoyable performance.
Books:
Yann Martel: Life of Pi, Winner of the 2002 Man
Booker Prize for fiction. Harcourt Books, 2001.
Leo Tolstoy: The Death of Ivan Ilyich. 1886
Lawrence Tsen is
Associate Professor of Anesthesia
and Director of Anesthesia,
Center for Reproductive Medicine
Brigham and Women’s Hospital
Tr a n s i t i o n s…
In a department such as our own, with several hundred faculty,
residents, researchers, and support staff strewn over various locations,
few individuals have regular contact with the larger whole. One who
does is Ernie Chislom, whose duties and daily perambulations put
him in touch with dozens of people, and, over the course of a week,
with hundreds.
Ernie’s tasks go well beyond the nominal title “mailroom clerk.” He also
orders supplies, keeps the duty room stocked, copies articles at Countway
Library, does errands as needed, and makes sure people get fed—and that’s the
short list. Estimating that he spends 80% of his time on the go, Ernie enjoys the activity and variety
of his workday—his motto is “Whatever makes this department better, I want to do.”
Over the six and a half years Ernie’s been with us, we’ve all experienced his enthusiasm and energy,
and the good will and cheer he brings to every facet of the day. While sports fans in particular
might feel a sense of loss, Ernie extends warmth and friendliness to everyone, and his July
departure shall doubtless leave us all a bit distraught.
Immediate plans are to take a few months off, perhaps traveling with wife, Elwanda, and
enjoying the company of Cyrus Anne, his Rottweiler/Shepherd hybrid. Ernie plans to let the
rest and relaxation help guide him to a decision on “what next?” For now, after 36 years in the
workforce, he’s eagerly looking forward to a well-deserved break. Our thanks and best wishes.
The Anesthesia Record • May/June 2006
BWH Biomedical Engineering (from page )
2. What Areas Does the OR Team Cover?
Three BWH Biomedical Engineering teams cover the wide
range of medical equipment at BWH: the OR Team, the
Monitoring Team, and the Infusion Technology Team.
The OR Team provides anesthesia and surgical technology support for the following areas: Main Operating
Rooms, Endoscopy, PACU, Day Surgery, Pre-Op, Magnetic
Resonance Therapy (MRT), and Ambulatory Treatment.
In addition, we support the following remote anesthesia
locations: Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), Labor and
Delivery (L&D), In-Vitro Fertilization (IVF), Family Planning, the Cath Lab and Radiation Oncology, and Interventional Radiology (INR).
3. How Many Medical Devices Does Biomedical
Engineering Manage?
We currently support over 15,000 devices hospital-wide.
Devices classified as Life-Support/High-Risk/Normal-Risk
require scheduled maintenance 1 to 2 times a year. Some
examples of Life-Support equipment include anesthesia
machines, cardiac bypass machines, and defibrillators.
Examples of High-Risk devices include electrosurgical
units, lasers, and vaporizers.
The JCAHO requirement for up-to-date compliance is
100% for Life-Support devices and 95% for High-Risk and
Normal-Risk devices. You can help us guarantee compliance by arranging for access to equipment when it is due
for service.
4. How Does Biomedical Engineering Manage All
This Equipment?
Partners Biomedical Engineering (PBME) has developed a
Medical Equipment Management Plan (MEMP), which is
designed to minimize the risk of using patient-care equipment through inspection, preventive/scheduled maintenance, and education of those who use and maintain
the equipment. The Equipment Management Committee
(EMC) is a PBME committee that meets to ensure that
medical equipment is managed under MEMP. Ernst
Daniel, Clinical Engineer, and Trevor Roberts, Senior
BMET, represent the OR Team on this committee.
All patient-care equipment in the MEMP are assessed
using a risk-classification system that addresses the equipment function, clinical application, preventive-maintenance requirements, likelihood of equipment failure based
on history, and environment of use. Based on the calculated score for each device, the resulting risk classification
determines the scheduled maintenance (SM) interval. As
mentioned earlier, anesthesia machines are classified as
Life-Support devices. We manage 60 anesthesia machines,
each of which requires scheduled maintenance twice a
year.
5. How Does Biomedical Engineering Keep Track
of It All?
Partners Biomedical Engineering uses a database to
track the medical equipment we manage. Each device
is assigned a unique control number and has an associated equipment profile. Our equipment database stores
information such as the work history of a device, which
can provide valuable data for analysis. This history also
includes the details of user-related problems specific to a
device, so when you call us to a room, the details of that
call become part of the device’s history. This enables Biomedical Engineering to track problems associated with a
particular device.
This database allows us to learn about repeated failures,
which can be useful for predicting failures, deciding
on future capital-equipment purchases, and gaining
insights for planning equipment life cycles and servicing
­equipment.
6. Who Is on the OR Team?
See page 5. We also currently have an open BMET position.
7. What Does Biomedical Engineering Do?
Doesn’t “Biomed” Just Fix Things?
Clinical Engineers (CEs) are involved in the support of
complex patient-care technology or systems, and are the
technical resource for the hospital and clinicians. Clinical engineers evaluate and assess patient-care technology,
and are involved in project work, equipment installations, deployment, and capital-equipment purchases. They
ensure that medical devices are managed properly under
the MEMP, and collaborate with staff on the effective
in-service for the use of patient-care technology. Clinical
engineers are also involved in following up with safety
reports, device failures, and recalls. Off-hours a clinical
engineer is on-call and available for emergencies.
Biomedical Engineering Technicians (BMETs) repair,
maintain, and perform scheduled maintenance on patientcare equipment. They also provide in-house on-call
response to help clinical staff troubleshoot and diagnose
equipment-related problems. After-hours and on weekends, a technician is on-call and available for emergencies. BMETs also assist clinical engineers with equipment
installations.
The OR Biomedical Engineering Team
Claire Cabral,
Sr. BMET
Ernst Daniel,
Clinical Engineer
Evelyn Fan,
Clinical Engineer
Eddie Holmes,
Facilities Technician
Ross Jacques,
BMET
Anthony Johnson,
BMET
Dr. Jim Philip,
Medical Liaison
Trevor Roberts,
Sr. BMET
Biomedical Engineering OR Coverage
In-house coverage hours:
6:00am – 5:00pm, Monday - Friday
OR Biomed extension:
31987 (for non-urgent calls)
OR Biomed pager: 11055 (for urgent calls)
Sterilizer/CPD calls to be paged to:
28889
Facilities Technician pager:
11005
After hours/weekends pager:
11055 (for emergencies)
Maximum response time for call-back after hours/
weekends:
20 minutes (The technician will try his/her best to assist you over
the phone so that you can get the help you need quickly)
Maximum response time for in-house support
after hours/weekends:
2 hrs
The Anesthesia Record • May/June 2006
BWH Biomedical Engineering (from page )
Facilities Technicians repair, maintain, and perform
scheduled maintenance on sterilizers, surgical lights, OR
tables, and CPD equipment. They also provide in-house
on-call response to help clinical staff troubleshoot and
diagnose equipment-related problems. After-hours and on
weekends, a facilities technician is on-call and available for
emergencies.
The Medical Liaison acts as a clinical resource for the OR
Team, and an engineering and technical resource for clinicians, thereby serving as a liaison between clinical staff
and Biomedical Engineering.
8. Who Else Does Biomedical Engineering
Work With?
Since patient-care technology pervades the entire hospital,
Biomedical Engineering works with staff from many other
departments, including Anesthesia Technicians, Equipment Technicians, Equipment Pool, Engineering, OR
Clinical Support Services (OR/CSS), Central Processing
Department (CPD), Anesthesia, Nursing, Infection Control, Perfusion, Environmental Affairs, Materials Management, Patient Safety, Risk Management, and Information
Systems, just to name a few.
9. Where Is Biomedical Engineering Located, and
When Is It Open?
Most of the time, the BWH OR Biomedical Engineering
Team can be found in the main ORs on rounds, assisting
staff with equipment-related problems during the day. But
our permanent home is the OR Biomedical Engineering
Shop (which is located at LL-L1-206, between Interventional Radiology and Medical Records/Nesson Ambulatory elevators). From the main Anesthesia offices, turn
left at the vending machines and left again after the ASB I
elevators. Our shop is down the hall on the right. See the
table on page 5 for further information.
10. Tips from Biomedical Engineering
As a teaching hospital, Brigham and Women’s provides
exposure to many types of technology. Biomedical
Engineering currently supports a fleet of 60 anesthesia
machines, 32 of which are manufactured by GE DatexOhmeda, and 28 by Drager Medical. There are, in turn, a
variety of models:
GE Datex-Ohmeda
Drager Medical
6 Aestiva 3000
1 Narkomed MRI
1 Aestiva 5
2 Narkomed MRI-2
2 Excel 210
3 Fabius Tiro
4 Mod II
22 Fabius GS
3 Mod II Plus
7 Mod CD
9 Mod SE
The most important tip we have for you is to do the FDA
Anesthesia Checkout! Each anesthesia machine has an
FDA Anesthesia Apparatus Checkout Recommendations
card attached to it, with model-specific instructions for
performing the checkout procedure. Doing this checkout
will help to determine if there are any problems with your
machine before the case starts. If problems are discovered,
needless to say it’s much easier for us to help you find a
solution before the patient is intubated, rather than when
the patient is already being ventilated.
The most important parts of the checkout are:
1) Low-pressure leak test
2) Leak test of breathing system/high-pressure leak test
3) O2 sensor calibration
4) Flow sensor calibration
5) Check for moisture (not part of the checkout, but valuable to do in preventing problems, especially when using low flows or for long cases). For Datex-
Ohmeda machines, check for droplets on the domes and in the flow sensor tubing. For the Fabius GS, ensure the water traps are empty.
If you need assistance in performing any of the tests for
the anesthesia checkout, or if you have any questions,
please feel free to ask anyone on our team. F
The Anesthesia Record is published bimonthly by the Department of Anesthesiology, Perioperative and Pain Medicine of Brigham and Women’s Hospital,
Boston, MA. It is available online at http://etherweb.bwh.harvard.edu/record
Editor: Naila Moghul, M.D.; Assistant Editor: Michael Joyce; Design/Layout: Jamie Bell; Secretary: Sharon Dube. Comments and suggestions are always welcome
and may be forwarded to the editor at [email protected].
News & Updates
Omid Farokhzad, M.D., was featured
on ABC News regarding nanotechnology research. Dr. Farokhzad and his colleague Robert Langer at MIT designed
tiny chemotherapy-loaded shells that
are only attracted to cancerous cells.
These smart nanoparticle shells are studded with chemical homing devices that
can tell cells apart from what’s on their
surface. “The surface of the cell that has
now become cancerous looks different.
It has other molecules on its surface that are absent on the surface
of the normal cells,” explains Farokhzad. As reported in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), the researchers
compared treatment with these chemo-loaded nanoparticles to
regular chemotherapy in mice with prostate cancer. They found
that the mice treated with a single dose of the nanoparticles had
significantly reduced tumors—in fact, most of the mice had total
tumor elimination. By contrast, the group given a dose of regular chemotherapy had no tumor reduction and a high mortality
rate. With luck, such nanoparticle therapy is a step in the right
direction. The researchers say that safety trials in men with prostate cancer might be ready in two to three years. Farokhzad and
Langer’s research was published in the April 18, 2006 issue of
PNAS, and was funded by the National Institute of Biomedical
Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB), the National Cancer Institute (NCI), and the David Koch Cancer Research Fund.
Thuc Tran, M.D., a 2003 BWH Anesthesiology graduate, was recently
instrumental in saving the life of a
fellow high school alumnus who collapsed without a pulse during an alumni softball tournament at Creighton
Prep, in Omaha, Nebraska. According
to the Omaha World-Herald, Dr. Tran
used a defibrillator to restore a heart
rhythm, and established an airway by
threading a tube through Mike Ricketts’s mouth and trachea. The
newspaper highlighted a Vietnam connection linking doctor and
patient: Thuc Tran was born in Vietnam, and Mike Ricketts is a
veteran of the Vietnam War. To which we would add a further
coincidence: Dr. Tran and Dr. Charles Vacanti, our department
chairman, are both graduates of Creighton Prep. It’s obviously a
school that’s doing something right. The full text of the article
can be viewed at: http://etherweb.bwh.harvard.edu/anes-
rec/media/TTran_June_06.pdf
Academic Activities & Achievements The department would like to congratulate the following BWH
residents, fellows, and staff alumni who were certified as Diplomates of the American Board of Anesthesiology after the Spring
oral examinations:
The Anesthesia Record • May/June 2006
James “Jake” Harry Abernathy, Hammam Hadi Akbik, James
Michael Anton, Nicole A. Boler, Daniel Castillo, Theresa S.
Chang, Daniel S. Choi, Daniel Anthony Diedrich, Elliott S.
Farber, Melissa W. Hull, Stefan E. Jahng, John Khozozian,
Pei-Lin Kim, Francis W. Lau, Ursula M. Marks, Andrew E.
McQuide, Michael Nurok, Anish S. Patel, Neil P. Ray, Beverly Jean Stickles, Nelson L. Thaemert, Luis Etienne Tollinche,
Assia Todorova Valovska, and Sarah. H. Wiser.
We are proud of each and every one! There were 810 new Diplomates certified—BWH had a hand in 24, roughly 3% of the total!
Vladimir Formanek, M.D., David
Hepner, M.D., Annette Mizuguchi,
M.D., Naila Moghul, M.D., and Monica
Sa Rego, M.D. (pictured), were each
awarded Faculty Awards in Excellence
for 2006. The Department established
these awards six years ago to honor faculty members for outstanding contributions in clinical practice, research,
education, administration, service and/or
professionalism.
Ru-Rong Ji, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Anaesthesia in the Pain
Research Center, has been awarded a five-year grant totaling $1.98
million from the National Institutes of Health, National Institute
of Dental and Craniofacial Research to study “Neuronal and glial
interactions of neuropathic pain.” Congratulations Dr. Ji!
James Philip, M.D., was recently
elected 2006 Teacher of the Year by the
Department’s residents. The award was
presented by last year’s chief residents at
the residents’ graduation breakfast held on
June 21.
Stanton Shernan, M.D., was elected to the Board of Directors for
the American Society of Echocardiography.
Gregory Stahl, Ph.D., was awarded a grant, 2006–2011 NIH/RO1
DE017821, co-Principal Investigator, to study “Microglia, complement, and pain.”
Lawrence Tsen, M.D., was elected Second Vice President, Society
for Obstetric Anesthesia and Perinatology, at the organization’s
Annual Meeting in Hollywood, FL, in May. This position progresses through the subsequent annually held positions of First
Vice President, President-Elect, and then President of the Society.
Publications Hindler K, Eltzschig HK, Fox AA, Body SC, Shernan SK,
Collard CD. Influence of statins on perioperative outcomes. Journal of Cardiothoracic Vascular Anesthesiology 2006;20:251–58.
Lemos P, Jarrett P, Philip B, eds. Day Surgery: Development and
Practice. International Association for Ambulatory Surgery, London, 2006.
Roos A, Rastaldi MP, Calvaresi N, Oortwifn BD, Schlagwein N,
van Gijlswijk-Janssen DJ, Stahl GL, Matsushita M, Fujita T, van
Kooten C, Daha MR. Glomerular activation of the lectin pathway of complement in IgA nephropathy is associated with more
severe renal disease. Journal of the American Society of Nephrology 2006;17:1724–34.
Harboe M, Garred P, Borgen MS, Stahl GL, Roos A, Mollnes TE.
Design of a complement lectin pathway specific activation system applicable at low serum dilutions. Clinical and Experimental
Immunology 2006;144:512–20.
Roos A, Rastaldi MP, Calvaresi N, Oortwifn BD, Schlagwein N,
van Gijlswijk-Janssen DJ, Stahl GL, Matsushita M, Fujita T, van
Kooten C, Daha MR. Glomerular activation of the lectin pathway of complement in IgA nephropathy is associated with more
severe renal disease. Journal of the American Society of Nephrology 2006;17:1724–34.
Wasan A, Kaptchuk TJ, Davar G, Jamison RN. The association
between psychopathology and placebo analgesia in patients with
discogenic low back pain. Pain Medicine 2006;7:217–28.
Lectures
Stanton Shernan, M.D., represented the Society of Cardiovascular Anesthesiologists at the American Institute of Ultrasound in
Medicine’s (A.I.U.M.) Ultrasound Practice Forum held in Washington, DC, April 21. The A.I.U.M is a multidisciplinary organization dedicated to advancing the art and science of ultrasound in
medicine and research.
Gregory Stahl, Ph.D., was an invited
speaker at the 4th International Innate
Immunity meeting in Corfu, Greece. He
lectured on the Role of the MBL-Dependent Lectin Pathway in Ischemia-Reperfusion Injury.
Gary Strichartz, Ph.D., Vice-Chair for Research and Director,
Pain Research Center, participated in the American Pain Society’s Annual Meeting in San Antonio, TX. He presented a lecture
titled Studies on the Mechanisms by Which Systemic Lidocaine
Relieves Neuropathic Pain in a workshop on Systemic Lidocaine:
Does It Have a Place in Pain Management?
Lawrence Tsen, M.D., was Visiting Professor, Department of
Anesthesiology, The Ohio State University Medical Center on
June 10–12 and gave the following presentations: Grand Rounds:
Hail Cesar: Anesthesia for Cesarean Delivery; Lecture: Defend
Your Epidural Technique; and Combined Anesthesia, Obstetrics,
and Pediatrics Morbidity and Mortality Conference: Postpartum
Hemorrhage. F
The following BWH staff members presented lectures and
abstracts at the recently held 28th Annual Meeting of the Society
of Cardiovascular Anesthesiologists:
• Simon Body, M.D., Amanda Fox, M.D., John Fox, M.D.,
Elmer Choi, M.D., Stanton Shernan, M.D., with J. Brechman and C.D. Collard: Echocardiographic Classification of
Thoracic Aortic Atherosclerosis and Its Impact on Cardiac Surgical Technique.
• Amanda Fox, M.D.: Indications and Intraoperative Considerations for VAD Placement.
• Douglas Shook, M.D.: Mitral Valve Dysfunction Following
Mitral Repair Surgery.
• Stanton Shernan, M.D.: Mitral Valve Repair: Assessing Feasibility, Adequacy and Complications of Mitral Valve Reconstruction and Attenuating the Systemic Inflammatory Response to
CPB as a Means for Improving Outcomes: Fact or Fiction?
Ru-Rong Ji, Ph.D., chaired a symposium on Spinal Second Messenger Pathways under Different Pain Conditions. He was also a
speaker for the symposium at the Annual American Pain Society
Conference held in San Antonio, TX, May 3–6.
We’re off for the summer!
Watch for the next issue of The Record
this fall.