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Dear friends and colleagues,Dear friends and colleagues,Dear friends and colleagues,
The Organizing Committee of the Third “Brano” Radovancevic Heart Failure Forum invites
you to attend “Innovations and New Treatment Strategies in Heart Failure.” The Forum
will be held in Portoroz, Slovenia, September 30–October 2, 2010. All faculty members are
internationally recognized experts in their fields.
Based on feedback from attendees and faculty, the Second International “Branislav
Radovancevic” Heart Failure Symposium was a great success! Over 50 internationally
recognized faculty and more than 350 participants attended. We are exceedingly pleased
that our goal to distribute comprehensive updates in the treatment of advanced heart
failure has, once again, been achieved. We will strive to make this year’s symposium even
better. As this conference is becoming more noticeable, attendance will only continue to
grow.
At this year’s conference, variety of treatment options, including state‐of‐the‐art medical
therapy, heart transplantation, and mechanical circulatory support will be presented and
discussed by world recognized leaders in the field. This will with no doubt be of interest to
clinicians treating cardiac disease, interventional cardiologists, cardiac surgeons,
interventional radiologists, and specialists treating end‐stage heart failure. We also
believe that the Forum is valuable for other professionals, residents, and students with a
special interest in this field. This year we will focus to additionally encourage the lively,
interactive discussion among the international faculty and the audience in order to be
more engaging and beneficial to all.
The Organizing Committee believes that conferences such as these are vital for promoting
an understanding of advances in heart failure treatment that could enable many more
patients to survive their disease. We encourage you to register for this exciting
educational program.
Although Slovenia may be one of the smallest countries in Europe, it has a beautiful and
varied landscape—from the snow‐capped Alps to the crystal‐blue Adriatic Sea. Its villages
and cities are filled with excellent restaurants and amazing sights. Visit http://
www.slovenia.info to learn more. So plan to come, learn, and enjoy.
We look forward to welcoming you in Portoroz.
prof. Igor D. Gregorič, MD prof. Bojan Vrtovec, MD, PhD
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Branislav RadovančevićBranislav RadovančevićBranislav Radovančević
Branislav (“Brano”) Radovancevic, a legend in the international
heart‐failure community. Born in Osijek, Croatia, completed his
medical degree in Belgrade, Serbia and became a Resident in the
Cardiovascular Surgery Institute “Dedinje” also in Belgrade. In 1984,
his passion for therapy of heart disease brought him to Houston,
Texas, where he joined the Cardiopulmonary Transplantation
Department of the Texas Heart Institute (THI) at St. Luke’s Episcopal
Hospital, as research fellow. He quickly became an invaluable
member of the transplant program. As an emerging leader in immunosuppression,
immunology and transplant research, Brano was highly respected nationally and
internationally. His early research into therapies to prevent and manage organ rejection
was recognized worldwide. As an integral member of THI’s animal research team, Brano
designed and preformed studies involving myocardial protection during cardiac
operations, as well as temporary and permanent mechanical circulatory assist devices,
heart valve prostheses, and synthetic vascular grafts. In addition he authored, and co‐
authored approximately 300 publications, and oversaw the writing of numerous heart
failure and transplant protocols. He lectured and traveled extensively throughout all these
years, sharing his knowledge and expertise about mechanical circulatory support, heart
transplantation, and other heart failure therapies with colleagues and friends. Owing to
his tireless efforts, Brano became Associate Director of Transplant Research in 1998 and
Director of the Center for Cardiac Support in 2005.
For the annual THI symposium, he developed and hosted the famous “Rodeo Meeting”,
bringing top cardiologists and surgeons from around the country to debate topics in
transplantation. Introduced in 1993, the Rodeo Meeting still exists, having grown steadily
throughout the years.
Until his death in September 2007, Brano continued to make invaluable contributions to
the field of heart transplantation, particularly immunosuppression of the transplant
patient, and to other areas of cardiovascular research. His commitment to the fight
against heart disease and his compassion for his patients helped make THI an unparalleled
bastion of cardiovascular research. Indeed Brano exemplified the mission Dr. Denton A.
Cooley envisioned in 1962, when he founded THI: to reduce the devastating toll of
cardiovascular disease through innovative programs in research, education and improved
patient care. Although Brano is no longer physically present, his legacy will continue to
inspire his medical colleagues and to benefit heart failure patients everywhere.
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Organizing Commitee:Organizing Commitee:Organizing Commitee:
Bojan Vrtovec, MD, PhD (president), Matjaž Bunc, MD, PhD Igor D. Gregorič, MD, Mirta Koželj, MD, PhD,
Renata Okrajšek, MD, PhD, Gregor Poglajen, MD,
Miran Šebeštjen, MD, PhD, Rajko Radovančević, MD;
Scientific Commitee:Scientific Commitee:Scientific Commitee:
Igor D. Gregorič, MD (president), Reynolds M. Delgado, MD,
O.H. Frazier, MD, Sharon A. Hunt, MD, Mirta Koželj, MD, PhD,
Emerson Perin, MD, PhD, Rajko Radovančević, MD,
Guillermo Torre‐Amione, MD, PhD, Bojan Vrtovec, MD, PhD;
Correspondence:Correspondence:Correspondence:
Scientific correspondence:
Igor D. Gregorič, MD Cardiothoracic and Vascular Surgery Cardiopulmonary Transplantation
TEXAS HEART INSTITUTE, Texas Medical Center
MC 2 ‐114A, PO Box 20345, Houston, TX 77225‐0345
Email: [email protected] Phone: 001 832 355 6809
Registration:
Online: www.slo‐heart.org or
E‐mail: [email protected]
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Key Topics
Novel Approaches in Acute Heart Failure
Treatment of Advanced Ischemic Heart Failure
Cardiac Regeneration
Improving Long‐Term Survival in Heart Transplantation
Multi Organ Transplantation
Mechanical Circulatory Support: State‐of‐the‐Art
The Future of Medical Management
Note:
Detailed programme will be available at
www.slo‐heart.org in May 2010.
Workshops
Heart Failure Therapeutic Challenges for General Practitioner
Percutaneous Interventions in Heart Failure
Study Design and Publications
Integrated Approach to Heart Failure Management in Internal Medicine
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Emma J. Birks, MD Louisville, KY, USA Roberta C. Bogaev, MD Houston, TX, USA Saša Borović, MD Belgrade, Serbia Andrew B. Civitello, MD Houston, TX, USA Reynolds M. Delgado, MD Houston, TX, USA Walter P. Dembitsky, MD San Diego, CA, USA Bass A. de Mol, MD Amsterdam, The Netherlands OH Frazier, MD Houston, TX, USA Charles D. Fraser Jr., MD Houston, TX, USA Siniša Gradinac, MD Belgrade, Serbia Igor D. Gregorič, MD Houston, TX, USA Sharon A. Hunt, MD Stanford, CA, USA Patrick Jourdain, MD Pontoi‐se, France Biswajit Kar, MD Houston, TX, USA Reiner Koerfer, MD Essen, Germany Ivan Knežević, MD Ljubljana, Slovenia
Jon Kobashigawa, MD Los Angeles, CA, USA Robert L. Kormos, MD Pittsburgh, PA, USA Mirta Koželj, MD Ljubljana, Slovenia Urban Lönn, MD Stockholm, Sweden James Long, MD Salt Lake City, UT, USA Matthias Loebe, MD Houston, TX, USA Pranav Loyalka, MD Houston, TX, USA Marianne Mallia, Houston, TX, USA Edwin McGee, MD Chicago, IL, USA Tim Myers, Houston, TX, USA Francis D. Pagani, MD Ann Arbor, MI, USA Emerson Perin, MD, PhD Houston, TX, USA Danijel Planinc, MD Zagreb, Croatia Piotr Przbylowski, MD Krakow, Poland Tomaž Podnar, MD Ljubljana, Slovenia Rajko Radovančević, MD Houston, TX, USA
Herman Reichenspurner, MD Hamburg, Germany Ana Marija Segura, MD Houston, TX, USA Dmitry Shumakov, MD Moscow, Russia Frank W. Smart, MD New Jersey, NY, USA Richard W. Smalling. MD Houston, TX, USA Željko Sutlić, MD Zagreb, Croatia Benjamin C. Sun, MD Columbus, OH, USA Miran Šebeštjen, MD Ljubljana, Slovenia David O. Taylor, MD Cleveland, OH, USA Guillermo Torre‐Amione, MD Houston, TX, USA Jeffrey A. Towbin, MD Cinncinati, OH, USA Egemen Tuzun, MD Houston, TX, USA J. David Vega, MD Atlanta, GA, USA Bojan Vrtovec, MD Ljubljana, Slovenia Andrae Wasler, MD Graz, Austria George M. Wieselthaler, MD Vienna, Austria
Invited faculty
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Registration Online registration will be available at www. slo‐heart.org. Online registration
will close on September 15th. On‐site registration will be available. Further
details regarding registration wil be available on our web site in May 2010.
Registration desk will be open in the foyer of the convention center (Grand
Hotel Bernardin) on September 30th, 2010 from 4:00 pm to 7:00 pm, on Octo‐
ber 1st from 7:30 am to 7:00 pm and on October 2nd from 8:00 am to 11:00
am.
THERE IS NO REGISTRATION FEE
Note: You can find all detailed information about scientific programme, regis‐
tration, hotel accommodation and social programme at the web site: www.slo‐
heart.org
General Information
Congress Venue:Congress Venue:Congress Venue:
The symposium will be held at the St. Bernardin Adriatic resort & Convention center, a multipurpose center, located near beautiful coastal city of Portoroz, Slovenia. Further information regarding convention center an housing is available at www.h‐bernardin.si
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Slovenia:Slovenia:Slovenia: Slovenia is a country with excellent geographic position at the crossroads of
routes leading from the cold north to the warm Mediterranean south. On no
more than 20.000 square kilometers, a fascinating variety of landscapes can be
found, ranging from the Mediterranean seaseide and stone Karst to the Alps
and the Pannonian lowland. Equally diverse and attractive is the cultural heri‐
tage of Slovenia and its people. For any further information, please see http://
www.slovenia.info/
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Portorož:Portorož:Portorož:
Portorož is a tourist town which boasts the longest tourist tradition in Slovenia
and offers comfortable hotels and modern swimming pools, restaurants and
events. It is a popular conference centre – various conference and meeting
facilities can accommodate up to 1500 visitors. Portorož has a casino, a sport
airport and marina. It is a town visited by tourists from all over Europe and
other countries as well. It is an internationally known holiday centre and clima‐
tic health seaside resort. ([email protected])
How to get to Portorož:How to get to Portorož:How to get to Portorož:
Car: Being close to Italy and Croatia, Portorož is very easily accessible by car. It
lies only 32km from the Italian and 30km from the Slovenian motorway. Porto‐
rož can be accessed from the direction Ljubljana/Trieste–Koper–Izola–
Portorož.
Railway: The Koper Railway Station is 15km from Portorož.
Bus: The Portorož bus stop is located at the heart of Portorož, at the Portorož
Auditorium turnoff, near a grocer.
Airplane: The Portorož Airfield is 6km from the town of Portorož, international
Ljubljana Jože Pučnik Airport 145km, and Ronchi Airport, Italy, 80km.
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SEE YOU IN SEPTEMBER!SEE YOU IN SEPTEMBER!SEE YOU IN SEPTEMBER!
www.slowww.slowww.slo‐‐‐heart.orgheart.orgheart.org