The course, designed to provide training to interventionalists on the transradial approach, was held in Merit’s new state-of-the-art training facility in its European headquarters in Maastricht, the Netherlands. It took place on 25 and 26 February. The ThinkRadial programme serves to educate and train interventional cardiologists, interventional radiologists and vascular surgeons around the world about using the radial artery, as an alternative to the femoral artery, to gain access for interventional procedures.
The two-day ThinkRadial course, which began in the USA in 2014, provides a full spectrum of didactic and hands-on educational opportunities. This course marks the first in a series of two-day course offerings scheduled for 2016 at Merit’s European headquarters, in addition to ThinkRadial courses in the USA and workshops and symposia throughout the year around the world.
“Radial access has proven to be an advantageous option for doctors and patients alike, and we are extremely pleased to expand the reach of our ThinkRadial programme to physicians in Europe. With transradial adoption rates approaching 70% in many European countries, we are excited to bring ThinkRadial to this growing radial market and increase the availability of this patient-centric medical approach,” said Fred P Lampropoulos, CEO of Merit Medical. “Our brand new, state-of-the-art training facility in Maastricht is the perfect setting for us to host our first European course and to discuss the many benefits of the radial approach for providers, hospitals, and, most importantly, patients.”
The course featured two concurrent tracks for interventional cardiologists and interventional radiologists, and was held in Merit’s new training centre that features hands-on training modules, including flow models for radial and femoral catheterisation and pulsatile puncture arms. The interventional cardiology track was be proctored by Tom Kiernan of Limerick Hospital, Limerick, Ireland; and the interventional radiology track was led by Darren Klass of Vancouver General Hospital and UBC Hospital in Vancouver, Canada. In addition to the course proctors, Ferdinand Kiemeneij, regarded as the “Father of Transradial Intervention,” wspoke as a special guest of honour about his experience with radial access and his vision for the future of the technique.
“I am honoured to join the esteemed faculty at this European training event to discuss the benefits of transradial approach for interventional procedures,” says Kiemeneij. “Transradial intervention is rapidly gaining acceptance globally, and I believe that training and education are paramount to increasing adoption and bringing this option to patients worldwide. I look forward to participating in this course and educating attendees on the latest science and research about the radial approach and my experience in performing this procedure.”
