Symposium Overview

Course Description

Since 1981 the San Diego Cardiothoracic Surgery Symposium has evolved as the premier educational gathering for perfusionists, physicians and surgeons, and biomedical professionals whose work relates to cardiovascular surgery. This annual four-day Symposium offers in-depth discussions of topics related to cardiovascular surgery and extracorporeal perfusion, and its exhibit show features one of the largest displays of new equipment and technology provided at an educational venue.

Course Objectives

 Upon completion of this activity, you as a participant should be able to:

    1. Apply information learned to select the most appropriate perfusion techniques or practice for specific patients, and evaluate various practices and standards to determine whether modifying your own would improve outcomes.
    2. Select an appropriate therapy to most effectively minimize neurological or end-organ complications and improve patients’ short- and long-term outcomes.
    3. Determine whether to incorporate new techniques, technologies, and pharmacologic agents in your practice of managing blood and bleeding during surgery. Apply principles of ethics to blood management.
    4. Identify and assess the advantages and disadvantages to the latest surgical and percutaneous cardiac interventions to ascertain whether they might serve as appropriate treatment approaches for your patients.
    5. Determine whether stem cell therapy for cardiac disease may become a viable treatment option in the future.
    6. Improve patient outcomes by applying information learned from analyzing and discussing challenging international cases and contemporary controversies.

    Attendee Profile

    CREF2008 is designed to meet the specific educational needs of medical professionals involved with treating cardiac disease: anesthesiologists, biomedical technicians, cardiac surgeons, cardiologists, nurses, perfusionists, physician assistants, and technology researchers and developers.