ISTH2013NEWS

XXIVCONGRESS

THurSdayJULY 4

Page1

XXIVCONGRESS

ThursdayJULY 4

Page3

XXIVCONGRESS

ThursdayJULY 4

Page2

LCM-49869_M1_HemSol_1pg.indd5-20-2013 6:30 PM Dan Capobianco / Freelance

Client CodeClient

LiveOverall TrimBleed

# of Colors

G.SM.HEM.05.2013.0031Bayer/Kogenate

203.3 mm x 290.3 mm216 mm x 303 mm222 mm x 309 mm

4C/CMYK

Job info

NoneNotes Fonts

Helvetica Neue LT Std (77 Bold Condensed), Helvetica LT Std (Condensed, Bold Condensed)

Images49869_Waving_1pg_HR.tif (CMYK; 589 ppi; 50.86%), Mol_Kg-N-NoBG_HR.tif (CMYK; 2634 ppi; 11.39%),

Bayer_Icon_4C.ai (69%), KOG_HemoSolutionsLogo_4C_T.ai (83.97%), LCM-46647_RSM_icons_2B.ai (69.42%)

Inks Cyan, Magenta,

Yellow, Black

Fonts & Images

Saved at

None

from hsdcapobianco5579 by

Printed At

HEMOPHILIA SOLUTIONS

Because at Bayer, we never lose sight of the human factor.

www.hemophiliasolutions.com

Exploring novel treatments for hemophilia A

© 2013 Bayer Pharma AG. All rights reserved.Bayer and the Bayer Cross are registered trademarks of Bayer.G.SM.HEM.05.2013.0031

Bayer is committed to research that can make a difference. We are investigating longer-acting rFVIII therapies that can allow for fewer infusions, which may make it easier to adhere to a prescribed regimen.

S:203.3 mm

S:290.3 mm

T:216 mm

T:303 mm

B:222 mm

B:309 mm

ANNOUNCEmENt PARtNERShiP iN SUPPORt Of thE iSth REACh-thE-WORLd fELLOWShiP PROGRAm »

EvOLUtiON Of mUSiC: SURvivAL Of thE fUNkiESt »

p. 11

p. 4

tO SPit OR NOt tO SPit: mEASUREmENt Of ANtiCOAGULAtiON StAtUS iN SALivA »

OvERviEW iNtERNAtiONAL SOCiEtY ON thROmbOSiS ANd hAEmOStASiS 2013 »

p. 6-7

EvOLUtiON Of ALtRUiSm:LESSONS fROm ChimPS fOR hUmANS »

p. 12

AbStRACt SYmPOSiUm ON thE diAGNOSiS Of vENOUS thROmbOSiS ANd PULmONARY EmbOLiSm »

p. 14

p. 12

NOt A mEmbER YEt?JOiN thE iSth AS A NEW mEmbER At thE CONGRESS ANd RECEivE A SPECiAL Gift

Membership in the ISTH is impor-tant at every stage in your career. With more than 3,500 members in 84 countries around the world, the ISTH provides you with the opportunity to become part of a global membership community of specialists in bleeding and clotting disorders. And, if you become a member while at the Congress, you will receive a very special ISTH gift and will be entered into a raffle to win an iPad Mini. Don’t wait!

The ISTH offers numerous ben-efits, including subscription to the ISTH’s highly-regarded publica-tion, Journal of Thrombosis and Haemostasis (JTH), timely in-formation regarding thrombotic and bleeding disorders, targeted educational programs, discounted rates, networking opportunities and access to e-learning platforms.

Learn more about membership in the ISTH onsite at the congress at booth 500 or online at www.isth.org.

Tweet of the day#iSth2013

Richard Torriani @richardtorriani

#ISTH2013 great event, massive participation

XXIVCONGRESS

ThursdayJULY 4

Page5

XXIVCONGRESS

ThursdayJULY 4

Page4

08:00-09:30 Oral Communications Anticoagulant agents: Elicium 2 Clinical studies II Basic issues in Emerald haemophilia A Cancer and thrombosis Elicium 1 Coagulation factor VII Auditorium Fibrinolysis - II E102 Inflammation: G106-107 Basic studies Negative regulation of G102-103 platelet function Platelet adhesion Mondriaan IV and function Platelet collagen Mondriaan III receptors Platelet disorders - II Mondriaan II Thrombophilia - II E104-107 Von Willebrand factor - II Forum09:45-10:30 Plenary Lecture Mondriaan I10:30-11:00 Coffee/Booth Visit11:00-12:30 Presidential Symposium Mondriaan I12:30-13-30 Lunch/Booth Visit13:30-15:00 ePoster Sessions ePoster area15:00-15:30 Coffee/Booth Visit

15:30-17:00 Abstract Symposia Structure-function of Emerald factor V Signal transduction Mondriaan IV Blood coagulation tests E 104-107 Regulation of platelet Mondriaan III function Thrombotic Mondriaan II microangiopathies Natural anticoagulants G104-105 Diagnosis of deep vein Elicium 2 thrombosis and pulmonary embolism Non-inherited risk factors G106-107 for venous thrombosis Inflammation and Elicium 1 coagulation axis Innovative treatments of Forum haemophilia A and B Tissue factor, cancer and G102-103 thrombosis Late breaking abstracts: Auditorium New insights

thURSdAY JULY 4, 2013 | PROGRAm At A GLANCE

The ISTH has recently endorsed the second edition of the World Federa-tion of Hemophilia’s Guidelines for the Management of Hemophilia. In its careful review, the ISTH noted the involvement of many experts from around the world, not only within the writing group but also in the elaborate review process. The society stated that these practical guidelines for the management of hemophilia clearly incorporate a wide range of views, and that the recommenda-tions are consistent with current best practice.

Hemophilia is a rare disorder that can be complex to diagnose and to manage. These guidelines, compiled and reviewed by global experts and based on the best available evidence, contain clinical practice recommen-dations on the diagnosis and general management of hemophilia, includ-ing factor replacement therapy, mus-culoskeletal complications, inhibitors, and transfusion-transmitted infec-tions. By compiling these guidelines, the World Federation of Hemophilia (WFH) aims to assist healthcare pro-viders seeking to initiate, maintain or

enhance hemophilia care programs, encourage practice harmonization around the world and, where recom-mendations lack adequate evidence, stimulate appropriate studies.

The second edition of the Guidelines for the Management of Hemophilia is available in the journal Haemophilia and on the WFH’s website at www.wfh.org.

iSth Endorses the Second Edition of theWorld federation of hemophilia’s Guidelines on the management of hemophilia

Amy Shapiro is a paediatric haema-tologist who received her medical de-gree at New York University School of Medicine, New York, USA. She completed her paediatric internship, residency and fellowship in paediat-ric haematology/oncology at the Uni-versity of Colorado, Health Sciences Center. She became Associate Pro-fessor of Paediatrics at the Indiana University School of Medicine before her current position as the medical director of the Indiana Hemophilia and Thrombosis Center (IHTC) and adjunct professor of paediatrics at

Michigan State University. The IHTC was founded in 1999 and is now one of the largest federally funded haemophilia treatment centres in the United States. IHTC operates clin-ics state-wide, and continues to be involved in numerous clinical trials, while offering patients cutting-edge therapies and access to research protocols.

Shapiro’s lecture will focus on hae-mophilia care in the 21st century. Haemophilia is caused by an absence or decreased amount of one of the

clotting factors. Haemophilia care has undergone substantial improvements during the past 40–50 years. Clotting factor concentrates were not sufficiently refined to enable self-administered treatment at home until the 1970s. Unfortunately, these advances led to transmission of viral diseases includ-ing HIV and hepatitis, resulting in an increased burden of morbidity and mortality, especially during the 1980s. Throughout the past two decades, product development, including the advent of recombinant concentrates, has greatly improved the safety and availability of therapy and the focus of care is shifting towards prevention and management of disease seque-lae. Long-term substitution therapy (prophylaxis) of the missing clotting factor is the recommended treatment in severe haemophilia, but several questions remain to be elucidated such as when to start and how to op-timise these regimens, and when or whether to stop this expensive treat-ment. The major side-effect of treat-ment, development of inhibitors to the infused concentrate, is the main threat to the health of patients and consequently the subject of intense research. Development of new prod-ucts with improved pharmacokinetics is the next step to improved therapy. This and other developments in the care for haemophilia patients will be discussed.

AmY ShAPRiO’S viEW ON hAEmOPhiLiACARE iN thE 21St CENtURY

Caption: Andreas Greinacher, ISTH Education Committee Chairman, and Hansjoerg Duerr, Head of Global Strate-gic Marketing Hematology at Bayer HealthCare, Announce Partnership in Support of the ISTH Reach-the-World Fellowship Program at ISTH 2013.

XXIVCONGRESS

ThursdayJULY 4

Page7

XXIVCONGRESS

ThursdayJULY 4

Page6

XXIVCONGRESS

ThursdayJULY 4

Page9

XXIVCONGRESS

ThursdayJULY 4

Page8

Cha

ngin

g Po

ssib

ilitie

s in

Hae

mop

hilia

® is

a r

egis

tere

d tr

adem

ark

owne

d by

Nov

o N

ordi

sk H

ealth

Car

e A

G a

nd t

he A

pis

bull

logo

is a

reg

iste

red

trad

emar

k of

Nov

o N

ordi

sk A

/S

KAZUYOSHI AOKIReal progress means listening to patients

Kazuyoshi has haemophilia A with inhibitors for Kazuyoshi, progressstarts with access togood haemophilia careWith limited access to doctors and information, Kazuyoshi’s parents formed a local patient association. Today, Kazuyoshi continues their work all over Japan.

At Novo Nordisk, we partner with patient associations, policy-makers and physicians to lead a coordinated response to inadequate haemophilia care. By involving more stakeholders, we facilitate concrete joint actions, including improved access to treatment, support and education resources for people with haemophilia and their families. We also work as a partner to improve access to care in the developing world, driving sustainable solutions that are changing possibilities for people with haemophilia wherever they live.

Find out how Novo Nordisk is changing possibilities in haemophilia at changingpossibilities.com

This is an advert.

NOVOCPIH-5625_M02_Comp_C.indd 1 5/21/13 10:32 AM

In today’s lecture Dr Janusz Rak will focus on his favourite coagulation factor, tissue factor (TF), and its role in brain cancer, with glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) in particular. Dr Rak will discuss the question, as to whether tissue factor expression and coagulation activation are merely an unspecific epiphenomena asso-ciated with brain malignancies, or if they constitute parts of intrinsic and diverse genetic programmes driving the disease. His talk will include un-published work on the links between profiles of coagulation factor expres-sion (coagulome) and the emerging molecular suptypes of brain tumours, as well as some of his explorations of the non-coagulant effects of tissue factor in animal models of glioma. Finally, he will present new data on procoagulant and oncogenic extracel-lular vesicles (oncosomes) that may play important biological roles in brain tumours.

Dr Rak, I would like to understand: is TF upregulation beneficial or detri-mental to the host? Does it matter what cells express TF in the patho-genesis of cancer: e.g., tumor cells, endothelial cells, or circulating and resident immune cells?

“Great questions, for which answers will probably be highly context-specific. We find that upregulation of TF is associated primarily with the classical subtype of GBM, which also expresses high levels of EGFR (a receptor with known oncogenic activity). This may not be the case for proneural GBM, in which TF may play a different (or no) role. I think that in the context of classical GBM TF likely contributes to the pathogenesis of tumours at several different levels, including as a signalling molecule, biological regulator, and as potential trigger of pro-coagulant events. The latter could act as a source of mor-bidity and a part of the vicious circle of clotting, invasion and growth. I think that many cell types express TF, but our experimental work points to tumor cells themselves, as the major source of this activity. Whether this is corroborated by independent studies remains to be seen.” This will be the first time Dr Rak is visiting Amsterdam. At ISTH, he will be primarily found at talks about cancer, procoagulant microparticles, and new anticoagulants. He will hap-pily engage in professional discus-sions on these subjects, however, he

will be equally pleased to talk about his ideas on unmet medical needs, scientific challenges, and most im-portantly, ways to stimulate talented young people to engage in scientific careers.

“Research is often wrong in a short run, but is always right in the long run, and therefore it cannot be sus-tained by impatient market forces, myopic policies of instant value ‘re-turn’, and other opportunistic pressu-res. I think that one problem we have in medical sciences is that investiga-tors and their trainees often speciali-se in very narrow areas of study, and may have difficulty communicating with their colleagues outside of that specific domain. Changing interests is not rewarded by granting mecha-nisms, neither are broader questions. What would be worth exploring could be some form of ‘migration’ of trainees and technicians between laboratories, as their projects dictate. This would enable them to integrate different aspects of questions at hand, as well as familiarize themsel-ves with technologies, concepts, and with gaps in our understanding.”

tiSSUE fACtOR ANd bRAiN CANCER

Editors ISTH2013 News• Louise Bannon (ISTH)• Goda Choi• Alev Karasu• Maurits van Montfoort• Dafna Groeneveld• Mandy Lauw• Tobias Bonten• MCI-Amsterdam• Frits Rosendaal• Marcel Levi

Design• wardtaal.com

Photography• martinstacho.com

Print• JPPJ

XXIVCONGRESS

ThursdayJULY 4

Page10

tips & funnyfacts about the dutch What’s the Deal with Drop? Dutchies truly love their liquorice or drop as it is known in the Neth-erlands. You can find it in nearly every shop from supermarket to candy shop. There is a flavour or type of drop for every taste from sweet to salty, hard to soft. Drop comes in many shapes and sizes from small green peas to large Muntdrop chewy coins.

The Netherlands boasts the high-est per capita consumption of liquorice in the world, with each person eating more than 4 pounds (2000 grams) per year!

Although the Dutch (as well as Scandinavians and Germans) love black liquorice, many people do not enjoy the taste, especially the salty varieties.

Gezellig!If Dutch is not your native tongue, you’ll soon realize that gezellig is not only difficult to translate, it’s also a challenge to pronounce. Give it a shot: “he-sell-ick”, start-ing and ending with the typically Dutch ‘g’ sound.

According to Wikipedia, this word is considered to be an example of untranslatability: “An example of untranslatability is seen in the Dutch language through the word gezelligheid, which does not have an English equivalent.” It derives from gezel, meaning companion or friend.

XXIVCONGRESS

THurSdayJULY 4

Page11Balancing the Dynamics

of Anticoagulation

www.CoagulationCenter.com

© Daiichi Sankyo Europe GmbH ∙ Zielstattstr. 48 ∙ 81379 Munich ∙ GermanyPhone +49 89 78080 ∙ Fax +49 89 7808288 ∙ service@daiichi-sankyo.eu · www.daiichi-sankyo.eu

An innovative educational resource for healthcare professionals

Ad_210x297mm_with_bleed_area.indd 1 29.04.2013 17:14:19

eVoluTIonof muSIc: SURvivAL Of thE fUNkiESt

Armand Leroi is a Professor of Evolutionary Developmental Biology at Imperial College London – as well as TV presenter and author. Most of his research is about metabolism in worms, but recently he had begun to study something quite different – music.

Music is a cultural artefact and impor-tant in our daily lives: we make music to express our deepest emotions. But were does music come from? How does it change? Leroi argues that it can be studied using evolutionary theory. With transmission from one individual to another music tunes sometimes change (“mutate”), mix (“recombine”) or are favoured over others (“selection”) and so the musi-cal population evolves.

Leroi has studied the evolution of music in cultures throughout the world, but also in the lab. Together with computer scientists, he devel-oped a system called “DarwinTunes”. In DarwinTunes a population of ‘musical loops’ is generated which is subjected to selection by an audience which rates its musical quality. This forms the selective pressure: loops with a high rating mated with other highly rated loops and produced a new generation of loops. There’s no composer in the system: just the power of Darwin’s natural selection mechanism.

Delving into the DarwinTunes popula-tions, Leroi and his collaborators discovered that the music does not evolve forever. After 500 genera-tions it stopped improving. Why? The answer to this question touches on some of the deepest problems of evolutionary theory. It may even have lessons for how we think about the frequency of disease-causing genes in the human population. Haemostat-ic genetic polymorphisms meet sur-vival of the funkiest? Perhaps! This inspiring Presidential Symposium lecture will show how the forces that shape our bodies and our cultures are really not that different at all.

XXIVCONGRESS

ThursdayJULY 4

Page13

XXIVCONGRESS

THurSdayJULY 4

Page12

“The possibility that empathy resides in parts of the brain so ancient that we share them with rats should give pause to anyone comparing politi-cians with those poor, underestimat-ed creatures.”, writes Frans de Waal in his article “Do you humans alone ‘feel your pain’?” in the Chronicle in 2001. Frans de Waal is a pioneer in studies on social interaction and altruism in animals. He says: “I’ve argued that many of what philoso-

phers call moral sentiments can be seen in other species. In chimpanzees and other animals, you see examples of sympathy, empathy, reciprocity, a willingness to follow social rules. Dogs are a good example of a species that have and obey social rules; that’s why we like them so much, even though they’re large carnivores.”Frans de Waal (1948) is a Dutch pri-matologist and ethnologist. He is the Charles Howard Candler professor

of Primate Behaviour in the Emory University psychology department in Atlanta, Georgia, and director of the Living Links Center at the Yerkes Na-tional Primate Research Center and author of numerous books including Chimpanzee Politics and Our Inner Ape. His research centres on primate social behaviour, including conflict resolution, cooperation, inequity aversion, and food-sharing. He is a Member of the United States National Academy of Sciences and the Royal Netherlands Academy of Sciences.He matches his theories with ex-perimental research. In one of his famous experiments, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, he tested seven female chimpanzees to see if observations of the species’ generous behaviour in the field matched their decisions in a lab. Given a choice of two coloured tokens, one that guaranteed a banana treat for two and the other that gave a reward for the chooser only, the chimps tended to pick the social op-tion. During his lecture at the Presi-dential Symposium at the ISTH Frans de Waal will provide an overview on his current views of social interac-tion and behaviour as observed in animals and how they could provide a lesson for human beings.

EvOLUtiON Of ALtRUiSm:LESSONS fROm ChimPS fOR hUmANS

Human saliva is often described as being 99.5% water. But the other 0.5% could contain potential bio-markers for a diversity of diseases. Besides water, saliva contains many important substances like glycopro-teins, various enzymes and even up to 8 million human cells and 500 million bacterial cells per ml. The

complexity of the contents of saliva offers us the opportunity to monitor general wellness, and assess oral health and disease. In his lecture “Measurement of anticoagulant status in saliva”, Dr Waander van Heerde will address a newly devel-oped method for the measurement of biomarkers in saliva. The determined biomarkers in the saliva reflect the INR status in patients treated with vitamin K antagonists (VKA). This method, for which Van Heerde and colleagues filed a patent application, is based on a validated method of sa-liva sampling, determining the level of biomarkers in the saliva sample and correlating the amount of these biomarkers to the blood coagula-tion status. Dr Waander van Heerde

performed his PhD research at the Department of Biochemistry at the University of Utrecht. Since 2000 he is a staff member at the Laboratory for Haematology of the RUNMC.

To SPIT or noT To SPIT: mEASUREmENt Of ANtiCOAGULAtiON StAtUS iN SALivA

XXIVCONGRESS

ThursdayJULY 4

Page15

Page14

WhAt tO dO ANdSEE iN AmStERdAm-tOURiSm tiPS

Staying for the weekend?

Step into the postcard cityWhen you think of Amsterdam, images like clogs, tulips, cheese and windmills spring to mind. But beyond the clichés lie unique sights. The most famous place to buy tulips is the Bloemenmarkt, along the Singel, and you can find flavourful cheeses at the smart Reypenaer tasting room. Mean-while, eight windmills remain in Amsterdam, the most famous of which is De Gooyer. It’s a great place to sip a beer, as it’s right next to the award-winning artisan brewery Brouwerij ‘t IJ.Reypenaer tasting room | Singel 182 | Make your reservation online | www.reypenaercheese.com

Brouwerij ‘t IJ | Funenkade 7 | Open daily 14:00-20:00 | www.brouwerijhetij.nl

Mix with Moderns at the Stedelijk MuseumIn this city, you can mingle with great modern painters. The amaz-ing bathtub-shaped Stedelijk Mu-seum has an amazing collection of 20th and 21st-century artists. It holds pre-war works by Cézanne, Picasso, Matisse and Chagall, plus a selection of paintings and draw-ings by Malevich. Post-1945 artists include De Kooning, Judd, Lichten-stein, Nauman, Stella and Warhol. Stedelijk Museum | Museumplein 10 | Open daily 10:00-18:00 & Thur 10:00-22:00 | www.stedelijk.nl

XXIVCONGRESS

THurSdayJULY 4

AbStRACt SYmPOSiUm ON thE diAGNOSiS Of vENOUS thROmbOSiS ANd PULmONARY EmbOLiSm

How do you look back to the Congress?

In the past two years there has been an exponential increase in work-load towards this Congress. Working until very late has more often been a rule than an exception. But I’ve enjoyed it all! The organisational pro-cess has led to increased friendship among the Committee members and I believe this has contributed to the flawless performances of everyone. I look back happily and satisfied. It has been a memorable Congress.

What were the highlights of the Congress?

All 8 Plenary Lectures have been magnificent with unique insights into the fields of all the experts. I had high expectations of the President’s Symposium and it offered everything I had hoped for. The Master Classes, in which I participated too, were held in the e-Poster area. Small groups of

young investigators and a leading expert of the field held discussions in a relaxed atmopshere which made it comfortable for everyone to ask ques-tions and learn from the best. I’ve re-ceived great feedback from both the young investigators and the experts, so I believe this was a great success. The All Congress Party in the Beurs van Berlage was a way for everyone to meet informally and enjoy a drink and a dance. Finally, the football game of The Netherlands against The Rest of The World Saturday evening was fantastic. The Netherlands did not win the game as it ended in a 2-2 draw, but, of course, we cannot go on blaming our goalie.

What was the surprise of the Congress?

Typically, the weekend before the Congress the SSC attracts a modest number of participants. However, past Saturday morning we had over 4000 people registering already and this was more than we expected. I think this serves to how the SSC has become more focussed in its projects, and because we have really made an effort with the educational programme. But, I apologise that be-cause of this we did not have lunches for everyone on Saturday.

How do you reflect to the innovations implemented in this Congress?

The app for mobile devices is working well and this has definitely become a new standard for the Congresses. We returned the Cultural Night on Tuesday as this had fallen into oblivion since 2005. The Recap lounges, in which we replayed all State of The Art lectures, have been a great innovation too. This was the first Congress where the posters were all electronic, and while the system may need some tweaking, I am sure we will never see paper posters again. The sight of that room was fantastic, like a bazar with 1500 people all talking science and engag-ing in presentations and discussions.

What advice do you have for Sam Schulman, the next Congress President in Toronto?

He should have a small team of people who are close to him and who he can trust completely. This is the key to success. And furthermore, he should nor forget to enjoy it all and go his own way.

Acute deep vein thrombosis (DVT) and pulmonary embolism (PE) represent two manifestations of a similar clinical pathological process, together often referred to as venous thromboembolism (VTE). Established concepts and the latest evidence on the diagnosis of VTE will be the focus of the lecture by Dr Menno Huisman on Thursday the 4th of July. Dr Huis-man is a well known investigator in the field of diagnostic management of VTE.

The pillars of the diagnostic manage-ment of patients with suspected VTE are clinical decision rules, D-dimer assays and imaging tests. Numerous studies support a standardised strat-egy consisting of these three diag-nostic modalities to optimise safety and cost-effectiveness. The diagnosis of ipsilateral recurrent DVT by ultrasonography poses a problem, because persistent ultra-sonography abnormalities after the initial thrombosis are present in a high percentage of patients. The feasibility of CT or MR techniques for this clinical challenge will be dis-cussed by Dr Huisman.

The imaging test of choice for the di-agnosis of PE nowadays is multi-row computed tomographic pulmonary angiography (CTPA). CTPA studies showed a high sensitivity and speci-ficity and have demonstrated that it is safe to withhold anticoagulant treat-ment if CTPA has excluded acute PE. Besides these advantages, there are also disadvantages associated with widespread use of CTPA. With the development of the CTPA technique and the low threshold for using this technique at the Emergency Depart-ment smaller subsegmental emboli may become visualised. Further dis-

advantages of CTPA are the contrain-dications in patients with an allergy to iodinated contrast material and in patients with severely impaired renal function. Finally, the radiation dose of a single CTPA is considerable and is associated with an increased risk of cancer. This risk is especially of interest to the younger, female patient during reproductive age. The diagnostic approach for these spe-cific cases will all be discussed in the lecture by Dr Huisman. In the near future, most progress in this field can be expected in im-proved imaging possibilities with, for instance, MR applications for recur-rent thrombosis. Safety and cost-effectiveness will be important pillars in this research. The State of the art lecture by Dr Huisman is interesting for every clinician confronted with patients with a clinical suspicion of VTE.

Many of us will remember their first ISTH congress. Most researchers will debut with a poster, few with a talk. Rarely, a debut ISTH performance involves a lecture at the Presidential Plenary Symposium, as is the case this year. Dr Miguel A. Hernán gradu-ated from medical school in Madrid (1995) and is currently affiliated with the Harvard School of Public Health (MPH, 1996; MSc in Biostatistics and PhD in Epidemiology, 1999). Per-

haps underappreciated for his most interesting cameo performance in the Youtube video “Baby Got Dag”, he has been involved in multiple scientific projects that have resulted in 100+ publications. His research is focused on methods that can detect causal inference, ultimately to guide policy and clinical decisions. In the area of cardiovascular diseases, he has studied pharmacological, nutri-tional, and lifestyle interventions to reduce incidence of cardio vascular disease.

Dr Hernán, what paradoxes will you be busting today? “Many empirical results in the medi-cal literature have been labeled as paradoxes. For example, we often

hear about Simpson’s paradox, the obesity paradox, the birth weight paradox, the whatever paradox… During this talk I will argue that these apparent paradoxes may result from misguided interpretations of simple statistical analyses. Once we adopt a modern causal inference approach -many would say a common sense approach - the paradoxes vanish, and we find ourselves smiling at our own naiveté.”

All those in need of busting their own whatever paradox, please make sure to attend the Presidential Plenary Symposium. You will leave with a smile.

EvOLUtiON OfCAUSAL iNfERENCE:bUStiNG PARAdOxES

fAREWELLmESSAGE CONGRESS PRESidENt fRitS ROSENdAAL

XXIVCONGRESS

ThursdayJULY 4

Page16

Come to the Biogen Idec and Sobi booths to find out more about developments in haemophilia.

What is now proved was once only imagined”

WILLIAM BLAKE

“

Booths: 204 & 255

IMAGINE HOPE

THINK

CHANGE

INVENTDREAM CREATE

RE

SEA

RC

H

INNOVATE

HG

-NE

D-0

005-

CO

M