May 31, 2007 --

The UIC/Conquer Chiari Research Symposium is ready to go in just a couple of days on June 2nd at the University of Illinois Chicago. This is a professional event which is brining together top physicians and researchers to present their work, exchange ideas, and foster a collaborative research environment.

Although the event is intended for professionals, Conquer Chiari recognizes the value the presentations will have to patients, family members, and other non-medical, interested people.

That is why, thanks to generous corporate grants from Codman, Confluent Surgical and Bioplate, and thanks to a donation of professional services from Mediasite (Sonic Foundry) I am proud to say that the Research Symposium will be webcast for general audience viewing.

The webcast should be available Monday, June 4th, but I will send out an email and put an announcement on the site when it is up and running.

The link to the webcast is:  UIC Chiari Catalog

Since it is video, a broadband connection is required for optimal viewing. If you don't have a broadband connection, most - if not all - public libraries do.

We have a great lineup of speakers scheduled and I think it will be a great event. Here is a partial list of the presentations (this is subject to change):

• Konstantin Slavin - University of Illinois at Chicago - Duraplasty materials for Chiari decompression

• Terry Lichtor - Rush University, Noam Alperin - UIC - Importance of MRI-Based Measurements of Cerebrospinal Fluid and Blood Flow in Determination of Intracranial Compliance in the Management of Patients with Chiari Malformations

• Georgy Koentges - University of Warwick - Cellular and molecular origins of Chiari I/II: disentangling the underlying genetic circuitry by microarrays and genomics

• Jorge Lazareff - UCLA - What Chiari II Can Tell Us About Chiari I

• Mark Luciano - Cleveland Clinic - Endoscopic Chiari Surgery: Is a ”Minimally invasive” Procedure Enough?

• Ghassan Bejjani - University of Pittsburgh - Treatment of Failed Adult Chiari Malformation Surgery

• Neil Feldstein - Columbia U. - Dural Sparing Decompressive Surgery for Chiari I Malformations and Implications for the Management of Coexistent Autism

• Frank Loth - UIC - Importance of mechanical forces for patients with Chiari Malformation

• John Oshinski - Emory University - High-resolution MRI methods for anatomical and flow imaging

• Stephen Hulley - University of California, San Francisco - Epidemiology of Pediatric Chiari I Malformation in a California Population

• Peter Carpenter - University of Warwick - Theoretical models for the propagation of pressure pulses in the spinal CSF system and implications for the pathogenesis of syringomyelia

• John Oro - Chiari Treatment Center - Chiari Surgery: Will A Consensus Develop?

• Victor Haughton - University of Wisconsin  - CSF Velocity and Flow In Chiari Malformation

• John Heiss - NIH - Chiari I and Syringomyelia Pathophysiology

• Spyridon Sgouros - Birmingham Children’s Hospital - Posterior Fossa Volume In Pediatric Chiari Type 1 Patients

• Stephen Fletcher - UT Houston - Can bone decompression alone suffice in certain pediatric Chiari patients?

• Christopher Bertram - University of New South Wales - Post-traumatic syringomyelia: numerical models of possible tethering effects of arachnoiditis

• Ray D’Alonzo - P&G Pharmaceuticals - The Importance of Understanding The Neuropsychological Effects of Chiari

• Rick Labuda - Conquer Chiari - Working Towards A Cohesive Research Strategy And Agenda

In addition to the webcast, I will report on the event in the July newsletter, so there will be plenty of opportunities to hear, or see, what happened.

-- Rick Labuda

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