Medical societies unite on patient-centered measures for nonsurgical stroke interventions

FAIRFAX, Va.—The first outcome-based guidelines for interventional treatment of acute ischemic stroke—providing recommendations for rapid treatment—will benefit individuals suffering from brain attacks, often caused by artery-blocking blood clots. Representatives from the Society of Interventional Radiology and seven other medical societies created a multispecialty and international consensus on the metrics and benchmarks for processes of care and technical and clinical outcomes for stroke patients.

In February, the guidelines will be published first in SIR’s Journal of Vascular and Interventional Radiology and subsequently by each society either in its respective journal or on its website.

“These groundbreaking guidelines are the product of two years of collaboration among multidisciplinary teams from eight societies,” said Marshall E. Hicks, M.D., FSIR, president of the Society of Interventional Radiology, the national society of nearly 5,000 doctors, scientists and allied health professionals dedicated to improving health care through minimally invasive treatments. “With real progress being made in research and treatment of stroke over the last decade, this distinguished group of international authors—from societies whose members perform minimally invasive stroke treatments—felt that the time was right for a consensus on how to effectively treat and manage stroke patients,” said Hicks, the head of the division of diagnostic imaging at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston. source: Society of Interventional Radiology

Society of Interventional Radiology: Time to rethink varicose veins

FAIRFAX, Va., Feb. 6, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Society of Interventional Radiology, an international organization of doctors, scientists and allied health professionals dedicated to improving public health through minimally invasive, image-guided treatments, joined as a member of the "Rethink Varicose Veins" coalition, an alliance of organizations united to drive public awareness of the risks of varicose veins and chronic venous insufficiency.

"Becoming part of this wide-reaching initiative supports the Society of Interventional Radiology's mission to improve public health through advances in minimally invasive medicine," said SIR President Marshall E. Hicks , M.D., FSIR, who represents the society's nearly 5,000 doctors, scientists and allied health professionals. "The contributions of interventional radiologists—doctors who are specially trained in performing minimally invasive treatments using imaging guidance, and experts in the treatment of venous insufficiency—to this kind of outreach program are invaluable," said Hicks, the head of the division of diagnostic imaging at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston. "SIR is committed to developing and maintaining the highest standards of excellence in patient care. Together with the other societies involved, we are pleased to be a part of this campaign to alert the public to the dangers of varicose veins and venous disease," said Hicks.

source: PR Newswire

Medical societies to launch large-scale study on vein filter use

FAIRFAX, Va., Feb. 1, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Society of Interventional Radiology and Society for Vascular Surgery jointly will launch PRESERVE—the first large-scale, multispecialty prospective study to evaluate the use of inferior vena cava (IVC) filters and related follow-up treatment.

The study—along with the formation of the IVC Filter Study Group Foundation—are direct actions taken to address the August 2010 FDA medical alert detailing the possibility that retrievable IVC filters could move or break, potentially causing significant health risks for patients. SIR and SVS are in the process of determining a framework for the PRESERVE (PREdicting the Safety and Effectiveness of InferioR VEna Cava Filters) study, with the goal of obtaining a functional view of all filters placed in the United States.

"PRESERVE data will allow a systematic, functional view, representative of all filters placed in the United States, thus, all stakeholders—individuals, health care professionals, insurers and government regulators—will be armed with the knowledge they need on patient risk and, subsequently, quality improvement in filter placement, management and retrieval," said SIR President Marshall E. Hicks, M.D., FSIR. "This is a paradigm-shifting initiative: interventional radiologists and vascular surgeons collaborating to launch a large-scale prospective study evaluating inferior vena cava filters reveals a lot about each specialty's focus—and that focus is on patients, first and foremost," noted SVS President Peter Gloviczki, M.D.

source: PRnewswire