Mark Oldendorf, M.D., Contributing Physician to Cobble's Corner

By Mark Oldendorf, M.D., Contributing Physician

The Society of Atherosclerosis Imaging and Prevention (SAIP) held its Annual Scientific Sessions April 15-17, 2011, and inaugural CIMT Training Academy April 14-15, 2011, in Bethesda, Md. Although Dr. Cobble, an SAIP member, was unable to attend, he kindly requested that I provide a summary and overview of the meeting. I accepted his invitation, and along with my fellow SAIP officers, have developed a recap of the most important and interesting developments at the conference.

The SAIP is an organization of professionals committed to excellence in cardiovascular imaging and preventive cardiology and its application to patient care through education, advocacy, research, innovation and service to its members and the public. The Society’s mission is to explore and develop treatment strategies based on traditional risk stratification plus imaging; it was apparent throughout the meeting in Bethesda that this mission was being fulfilled.

The meeting was chaired by SAIP president Allen Taylor, M.D., one of the nation’s foremost clinical researchers in intima-media thickness ultrasound and a recognized expert in tomographic scanning of the heart. The faculty line-up read like a “who’s who” in cardiovascular imaging and prevention. Drs. Michael Bots, Eric DeGroot, Mario DiMichele, Damiano Baldassarre, Fabrizio Veglia and Mauro Amato — all internationally renowned researchers from Europe — made the trip across the Atlantic to be part of this inaugural event. Among those attending from the U.S. were Drs. Dan O’Leary, Joseph Polak, Bradley Bale, Dan Edmundowicz, Roger Blumenthal and Szilard Voros along with Amy Doneen, MSN, ARNP. They joined in the presentations and debates on the clinical application of IMT and coronary artery calcium scoring.

The SAIP Appropriate Use Criteria, just published this year, is a first-of-its-kind document that outlines for the practitioner the types of patients who should appropriately receive an IMT ultrasound scan of the carotid arteries. Dr. Bale and Ms. Doneen discussed the nitty-gritty of using IMT in clinical practice.

The meeting also reviewed the science and clinical application of cardiac CT for coronary angiography, calcium scoring and cardiac MRI. In addition to CIMT analysis and plaque characterization, the role of serial IMT scanning was discussed, with new data being presented that supported the concept that serial IMT scanning could be used to determine efficacy of treatment. The prevention arm of the SAIP meeting covered the latest in biomarkers, genetic research and the application of imaging to prevention.

Immediately preceding the meeting was the two-day Training Academy for CIMT, jointly sponsored/co-provided by the American College of Cardiology Foundation and SAIP. Thirty attendees received didactic lectures coupled with hands-on time performing IMT scans, all under the guidance of Dr. Taylor and the SonoSite ultrasound company, which donated instructors and ultrasound instruments to the training session. Attendees of the Training Academy left with a firm understanding of what is required to obtain an accurate IMT scan.

In summary, the attendees were exposed to a comprehensive review of intima-media thickness scanning, coronary artery calcium scoring and CT angiography of the coronary arteries and how these imaging modalities could be integrated with preventive strategies. Due to the unique content presented at this meeting and favorable reviews of the sessions, SAIP has begun work on a video box-set of the key lectures. Please check the SAIP website to see when these videos become available.

Plans are already underway for next year’s meeting and CIMT Training Academy. In addition, plans are being made to repeat the CIMT Training academy at various times between now and next year’s annual meeting. Anyone with interest in performing IMT in an office-based setting should strongly consider joining the SAIP, an organization dedicated to providing an academic voice concerning the clinical application of IMT and heart CT and helping practitioners develop an approach that successfully integrates imaging with prevention strategies.

If you have specific questions concerning SAIP activity, or wish to become involved in this academic community, contact information is listed below.

• Daniel Edmundowicz, M.D., President, SAIP: edmud@upmc.edu
• Mark Oldendorf, M.D., Chair, CIMT Council: moldendorf@hotmail.com
• Lawrence Leong, Executive Director, SAIP: lleong@sai-p.org

Contributed by Mark Oldendorf, M.D.

A board certified lipidologist and internist practicing primary care in Albany, NY, Dr. Oldendorf’s primary interest is in prevention and reversal of heart disease. He is chairman of council for Intima Media Thickness Ultrsonography of the Society of Atherosclerosis Imaging and Prevention and board certified in sleep medicine from the American Academy of Sleep Medicine. Dr. Oldendorf is also a former CBS TV medical correspondent for WRGB, Schenectady, NY. Email him at moldendorf@hotmail.com