LAUSR

The 30th annual Society for Vascular Medicine (SVM) Scientific Sessions were held in McLean, Virginia, May 29 – June 1, 2019. Once again, the meeting was a great success. Approximately 262 attendees from around the globe met in McLean (near Washington DC) for 21⁄2 days of academic sessions and vascular lab programming. On Wednesday afternoon, various SVM committees gathered to discuss plans for the coming months. Wednesday evening featured a special presentation organized by the Women in Vascular Medicine and SVM Next Generation Committee entitled ‘Achieving Your Career Goals’ followed by a lively dessert reception to kick off the 30th Anniversary of SVM. The meeting was officially kicked off on Thursday morning with Session 1, ‘The Year in Vascular Medicine’, which included updates on basic and translational science, anticoagulation and antiplatelet therapy, arterial and venous interventions, and lymphatic disease. The session concluded with the SVM award ceremony, where Dr Gornik awarded the Jess R Young Award to Dr Joshua Beckman, and the MSVM designation to Drs Maria Teresa Abola and Diane Treat-Jacobson (see below). Finally, the Mark A Creager Prize for Research Excellence was awarded to the authors of ‘E-cigarettes and cigarettes worsen peripheral and central hemodynamics as well as arterial stiffness: A randomized, double-blinded pilot study’, by Klaas F Franzen and colleagues.1 Session 2 was the Presidents’ Town Hall, featuring questions from SVM members answered by 10 of SVM’s Past Presidents. The session concluded with cake for all in celebration of SVM’s 30th anniversary. Sessions 3 and 4 on Thursday covered a variety of topics on managing arterial and aortic disease. In Sessions 5 and 6, five cases were presented in the Rapid Fire Session on Clinical Situations, followed by five research projects in the Jay D Coffman Young Investigator Presentations. The winner of the Coffman Award was Dr Raymundo Quintana (see below). The Moderated Poster Session, which included 45 posters, allowed meeting attendees to engage in deeper conversations with presenters about their research. The highlight of Thursday evening was the 30th Anniversary Gala, with a series of Presidential toasts, a silent auction, and unforgettable entertainment from Dr Thom Rooke. Friday morning started early with the SVM annual business meeting, led by SVM President Dr Heather Gornik, who passed the new SVM gavel to me in a peaceful transfer of Presidential power. Reports were given by SVM officers and committee chairs, followed by the election of the slate of officers for 2019–2021 and of Dr Mehdi Shishehbor, to our Board of Trustees. As the Sessions reconvened, Dr Gornik delivered her Presidential Address entitled ‘Change and Challenge’.2 To summarize the progress of our Society, Dr Gornik stated: Things are not perfect . . . but they are good enough. But good enough won’t carry us through the next 30 years or take us to the promised land of subspecialty recognition. In my final act as President, I implore each of you to commit to SVM and engage more than ever before in supporting our Society.