Society of Cardiovascular Anesthesiologists

Plan Now for the ICCVA 2004 Meeting to be held in Tokyo

Do you know the meaning of the phrase "autumn with the sky clear and blue, and horses growing stout"? This expression describes the autumn in Japan; the weather is beautiful and the food is delicious.

The 9th International Congress of Cardiothoracic and Vascular Anesthesia will be held from September 9th through September 12th, 2004 at Tokyo, in Japan. I am honored to be the President of this meeting. The main theme is Education and Safety of Cardiac Anesthesia: A World Prospective of Risk Reduction. Patient safety is the most important issue for anesthesiologists, and education should seek to reduce the risk during anesthesia. The meeting has 14 panels about new findings and technologies, original research poster discussions, four TEE workshops and one cardiopulmonary bypass workshop. Additionally there will be one special abstract session. Five to ten selected abstracts will be presented orally, and in honor of one of the visionary anesthesiologists of Japan, the Fujita Award will be presented to the two best researchers. We are also planning a TEE examination named the JBPOT (Japanese Board of Perioperative Transesophageal Echocardiography) on September 12th, 2004. The test will be given in Japanese and English.

The Hotel Nikko Tokyo, the venue for the meeting, is located just southeast of the center of Tokyo; it can be easily reached by train in a half hour from Tokyo station and seventy minutes from Narita airport. You can enjoy the night view of the Tokyo Bay area through the hotel windows and the Tokyo Disneyland and Disney-sea is near the hotel.

For additional information, please visit our website; http://www.jscva.org/iccva2004

Junzo Takeda, MD, PhD
President, 9th International Congress of Cardiothoracic and Vascular Anesthesia

Table of Contents:

President's Message
Plan Now for the ICCVA 2004 Meeting to be held in Tokyo
Literature Reviews
- Usefulness of statin drugs in protecting against atrial fibrillation in patients with coronary artery disease
- Morbidity and Mortality of a Failed Attempt at Mitral Valve Repair Converted to Replacement at the Same Operation
Drug & Innovation Review
- Levosimendan, a new Ca²⁺-sensitizing inotropic agent
PRO/CON
- Pro: Cardiac surgery without use of CPB does not require 'full' dose heparinization - Bruce D. Spiess, MD, FAHA
- Con: Low Dose Heparin - Kenichi A. Tanaka, MD; Jerrold H. Levy, MD