The 23rd Annual Congress in Palm Desert, November 5-8, 2009 was a huge success. The organizing committee was composed of Lowell Kabnick, Chair, Julianne Stoughton-Pre-Congress, Marlin Schul-Symposia, Ted King-instructional Courses, Mel Rosenblatt-Abstract Committee, John Mauriello-Poster Session, Kathleen Gibson- Special interest Sessions, Catherine Burge-nursing Section, and Joe Zygmunt-Ultrasound. Many new ideas were instituted through the efforts of this innovative committee making the Congress a world class educational event.

The theme for the 23rd ACP Congress, Bridging the Knowledge Gap, was designed with nationally and internationally accomplished phlebologists who provided the necessary and most current information on venous and lymphatic disease, including diagnosis, pathophysiology and treatment. Unique to this year were interactive debates, oral poster presentations, and new symposia such as Take Your Best Shot, Morbidity, and Adding Cosmetic Procedures to Your Practice. Replete with numerous and varied phlebological topics, the Congress was extremely well-attended with representatives from 48 states, The District of Columbia and 26 international countries.

“Firsts” were accomplished in the number of physician and allied health presenters, educational sessions, nursing workshops, and audience response measures. The unique symposia: Morbidity Conference and Take Your Best Shot were orchestrated through case presentations, which involved key phlebological concepts, diagnostic issues, treatment parameters and how to handle and avoid interventional complications. Utilizing the “Audience Response System” (ARS) questions during the AvF Debates and Take Your Best Shot were asked to the panel and audience. This invaluable learning instrument allowed instantaneous feedback to the aparticipants.

In addition, Pauline Raymond-Martimbeau and Philip Hertzman organized The world of Phlebology, an international lunch symposium, which introduced the audience to concepts highlighting the current thinking and practice of phlebology. Simultaneous translation from english to Spanish was available during this session.

Lastly, the european venous Forum funded their award winning abstract, “Medium-Term Follow-Up of a Randomized Trial Comparing Laser Ablation with Stripping of the GSv: Recurrence Rates and Patterns after 2 Years.” presented by Dr. L. Bjoern.

On Thursday, november 5th, the Pre-Congress day was divided into four tracts consisting of phlebology, business of phlebology, aesthetics, and ultrasound. The participants including physicians, nurses, ultrasound technologists, and other allied health professions were provided with a thorough introduction to these topics.

Our keynote speaker, Dr. Thomas F. O’Donnell, MD, FACS from Tufts-new england Medical Center, is considered a world’s leading expert in the field of perforating vein management. He provided us with his phlebological expertise during his presentation entitled: “The evolution and Critical evaluation of Less invasive Treatments for Chronic venous insufficiency: implications for Future Technological Development.”

This year the Abstract Selection Committee had a very difficult time choosing from a highly competitive pool of excellent abstracts. The Awards Committee chose as the platinum abstract award, “Comparison of Transcranial Doppler Hits Detection During CO2-02 versus Air-Based Foam Sclerotherapy for Superficial veins of the Lower extremity” authored by D. neuhardt, n. Morrison, and S. Salles-Cunha. During the oral poster presentation, the authors presented to, and answered questions from, the attendees. The top poster award went to D. wright who presented: “Polidocanol Microfoam Does not Cause Remote Sclerosis in the Lung.” Social events were enjoyed by many during the Congress with attendance at the new members and opening receptions culminating with the Saturday night evening dinner dance.

Presentations from the ACP 23rd Annual Congress are now available online @ www.phlebology.org for ACP members and others who were not able to attend this year’s program.

The 24th ACP Congress will be held in Orlando, Florida, November 4-7, 2010.

Lowell Kabnick, MD, FACS, FACPh, is the Director of the New York University Vein Center and on staff at New York University Langone Medical Center, Division of Vascular Surgery. He served as Chair of the 23rd Annual ACP Congress in November 2009.