Contact: Patti Minglin                                                                       FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Telephone: 630-209-2524
Email: patti@gogirlcommunications.com

Aurora IL USA/Apr 10 2013– ISASS-International Society for the Advancement of Spine Surgery has named Luiz Pimenta, MD, PhD as its new president. Dr. Pimenta has a degree from the Medical School of the University of São Paulo and completed his neurosurgery residency at Paulista Medical School.  He holds a fellowship in spinal endoscopic surgery and is currently the clinical director of the minimally invasive spine surgery department at the Instituto de Patologia de Coluna in Brazil and an associate professor at the University of California San Diego.  Dr. Pimenta has been developing new techniques and technologies to improve the surgical treatment in different spinal pathologies. He is now focused in minimal invasive spine surgery and motion preservation, participating in various research and development projects in these subjects and being a reference in spine surgery around the world.

Dr. Luiz Pimenta, MD, PhD, was named the new president of ISASS during ISASS13, a multi-professional spine industry event held in Vancouver, BC, Canada, last week.  Program highlights included presentations on Cervical Therapies and Outcomes, Lumbar Therapies and Outcomes, MIS Technique and Results, Biologic Therapies and Research, Navigation, Image-Guided Surgery and Robotic Assistance, Conservative Care and Injection Therapies, Biomechanics/Basic Science, Sports and Spine, and Nanotechnology—an eye-opening session for many attendees. “Stupp’s Nano session was mindblowing,” said Jeffrey Kleiner, MD, The Medical Center of Aurora, Aurora, CO.  “This was a ‘wow’ moment for spine surgeons,” added Michael Gordon, MD, HOI Orthopedics, Newport Beach, CA.

Winners of the best papers from ISASS13 include:

ISASS Leon Wiltse Award for Best Overall Paper – Sponsored by Dr. and Mrs. Hansen Yuan
Effectiveness and Cost per Quality Adjusted Life Year (QALY) Gained from Comprehensive Medical Management of Lumbar Spondylosis (S.L. Parker1, S. Godil1, S. Mendenhall1, S. Zuckerman1, D. Shau1, M.J. McGirt1)

Charles D. Ray Best Clinical Paper Award
Predictors of Failure of Nonoperative Management of Spinal Epidural Abscesses (M.B. Harris1, S.D. Kim2)

Kostuik Innovation Award – Sponsored by Tom Errico, MD
Eliminating Tumour Cells from the Cell Saver (CS) in Metastatic Spine Tumour Surgery Using a Leucocyte Depletion Filter (LDF): Dispelling an Old Myth (A/Prof. Naresh Kumar, Y. Chen1, Q. Ahmed2, V. Lee2, R.W.M. Lam1, H.K. Wong1)

Best Basic Science Paper Award
Intervertebral Disc Repair and Regeneration Using Neonatal Human Dermal Fibroblasts in the Rabbit Model (H.S. An, A. Chee1, P. Shi,, T.D. Cha, T.-H. Kao, S.-H. Yang, Y. Zhang,

Best Poster Award
Reversing the Dehydration Effects of Advanced Glycated Endproducts Accumulation in the Intervertebral Disc (R. Haughton1, M. Thi1, A. Sharan1, N. Granzella1, S. Tang2)

ISASS13 Program Chairs determined the winners.  Committee members reviewed all written submissions, graded each paper based on its academic rigor, viewed all presentations, evaluated all posters and selected the best in each category.  Original scores were developed through a blind scoring system in which authors’ names were omitted to avoid bias.

About ISASS-International Society for the Advancement of Spine Surgery
The International Society for the Advancement of Spine Surgery is an international, scientific and educational society organized to discuss and assess existing strategies and innovative ideas in the clinical and basic sciences related to spine surgery and to enhance patient care.

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