What a year so far!
I invite you to read through the next edition of the Vascular Surgery newsletter. Before beginning to speak about the Vascular Surgery response to the pandemic, I want to share with you my thoughts related to the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis. I add my sadness and outrage to his death and the racism that is still present in our country. This is the antithesis of who we are and what we are trying to be, individuals supporting a culture of inclusion, respect, safety, peace and an awareness of the dignity of each and every individual person, no matter their race, religion, ethnicity, or background. We are all part of one human family, and to have what happened to Mr. Floyd and other black brothers and sisters is so wrong! This is the time to reaffirm our commitment to respect the dignity of every person, each and every day. I am not silent at this time and you should not be silent either – let us affirm that all in our Vascular Surgery family and in our larger community of Michigan Medicine, our city of Ann Arbor, state of Michigan and country are safe and supported during these times and at all times. May our words and importantly our actions reflect these values. We should not and cannot tolerate anything less.
Now, regarding the pandemic that we have been going through for the past number of months, this has been a most unusual time. The response of the Vascular Surgery family has been quite remarkable. From our faculty who helped to organize the pandemic response and at the same provide emergency care to our vascular patients (remember, vascular emergencies did not stop just because COVID-19 was happening), to our trainees, mid-level providers and nurses who deployed on the frontlines and also took care of our patients in the hospital and in our clinics, to our researchers who had to scale down on site experiments and scale up new ways to continue their important research, to our administrative team facilitating many of the transitions, this was a time and remains a time we will not forget. However, I am pleased to say that we made it through the ramp-down, surge, and ramp-up and life is slowly beginning to look closer to normal again. I do wish to acknowledge and thank those in our Vascular Surgery family whose professional roles and jobs have either significantly changed or have been eliminated due to the financial effects of the pandemic.
In this issue of our newsletter, please read about:
- Reflections from Bobby Beaulieu, our senior vascular surgery fellow, on his experience on the front lines of 8D taking care of COVID-19 patients
- Reflections from Anna Boniakowski, our senior vascular surgery resident, on how her end of the year chief talk meaning changed in the pandemic
- How we worked to protect our frontline diagnostic vascular unit technologists while still providing outstanding care
- How we helped to develop plans for a field hospital in a very short period of time
- Day in the life description with Cathy Luke
- Laboratory happenings with members of the Henke Lab
- A multitude of awards/publications to highlight since our February/March issue
I hope you enjoy this issue of our newsletter, and I wish for you all the best as we move past this chapter of the pandemic. Please stay safe!
- Tom W.
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This Issue's Feature:
COVID-19 Reflections from the Frontline
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The pandemic and the height of the spring surge resulted in re-shifting of patient care, responsibilities, and required great adaptability. Many of our team members and colleagues took on the task of caring for COVID-19 patients - their courage, compassion and dedication to patient care are admired and appreciated by all!
Nurse Practitioners:
- In April, two of our team's outpatient nurse practitioners, Ann Luciano and Ann Eschelbach, were deployed to treat COVID-19 patients on inpatient units.
Trainees:
- Dr. Beaulieu, senior vascular surgery fellow, volunteered for deployment to care for COVID patients on 8D, a COVID ICU - Bobby provides a glimpse into this experience and lessons learned below.
- Dr. Davis, vascular surgery resident, while on academic development time offered to come in to provide coverage needs for vascular surgery so Dr. Beaulieu could be re-deployed.
- At the VA, Drs. Audu and Robinson were also re-deployed to care for COVID patients.
Diagnostic Vascular Unit (DVU):
- There were a lot of happenings with the DVU to contract services, protect technologists, and continue to offer critical patient care - see reflections from technologist Amber Clay and manager Sandy Brown below.
- A daily call to review orders for duplex studies on COVID+ and suspected patients was established with the DVU COVID Task Force, which included Erika Arndt, Dr. Barnes, Sandy Brown, Amber Clay, Dr. Eliason, Dr. Henke, Dr. Obi, Candy Nighswander, and Dr. Wakefield.
- New institutional algorithms were developed for the assessment of pulmonary embolism and deep vein thrombosis, and guidelines for obtaining compression duplex ultrasonography for the diagnosis of venous thromboembolism during the pandemic.
- Dr. Obi and Dr. Henke led the publication of the "Practical diagnosis and treatment of suspected venous thromboembolism during COVID-19 pandemic" in the Journal of Vascular Surgery based on her previous work during the SARs pandemic, ongoing research, and her collaboration with other DVU COVID Task Force members.
Faculty:
- Drs. Eliason and Coleman's militarily experiences and leadership skill sets were integral in the planning of a potential field hospital at Michigan Medicine - they've recapped this involvement below.
- Vascular Surgery faculty quickly adopted to virtual care by performing video visits to provide access to patient care and continuity for necessary services. Dr. Vemuri summarizes virtual care for vascular surgery patients below.
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Onward
Dr. Robert Beaulieu, Graduating Vascular Surgery Fellow
In mid-April I had the opportunity to help serve as a fellow on the 8D COVID ICU. It was supposed to be the middle of our ramp up period where we expected to reach our peak. For some reason, I decided to watch Disney’s
Onward
with my daughter right before I started, a movie whose premise relies on two children who lose their dad to some mysterious illness at a young age. So, yes, the nerves were hyped up. I had a ton of questions. Would I know how to manage ventilators? Would I be able to manage the complexities of these patients, especially with a disease that was foreign to me (or everyone)? Would I be better at ICU than vascular and decide on a career change, likely after a long string of awards? Would I put myself or my family at risk? Ultimately, the week on service laid many of these fears to rest and taught me a lot about how we provide care. Thinking back, here’s what I learned:
1 . Call patient’s families. We did this every day after rounds. The families couldn’t come in. Most were scared. Almost universally, they had bits and pieces of information with no context. You could hear the relief in their voice, even when delivering bad news.
2. Trust the nurses (and respiratory therapists). These people were the backbone of this whole operation. They took the brunt of the risk and went into the rooms routinely. And with that came a better knowledge of the patient as whole. They often knew something was off before the numbers indicated it.
3. Some people will not get better. This was a hard lesson. The seemingly most affected patients were the young ones (think: 30 years old). They had parents, siblings, and even kids, counting on them to survive. And sometimes, despite everything we would do, they did not survive. It is hard to fight the feeling that you failed them. The lesson here is that we are at a place with huge resources, and hugely talented people, and we bring all those forces to bear for these people. If they don’t survive here, they would not survive anywhere.
4. Protect yourself. I mean this in all capacities of the word. Physically, mentally, emotionally. There was no room for being “proud” around PPE use. When you aren’t 100% sure, just ask how to put something on or what to do. Regarding mental and emotional protection, everyone is dealing with this pandemic in different ways, some make sense to you and some don’t. And “not dealing with it” is one way to go, but doesn’t negate the fact that others around you may have a different path. There is no inherent weakness in any way, but you need to find what works best for you.
Even though these were lessons learned in a “crisis” situation, these have been steadfast tenets all during training. The Vascular Surgery Section here does many of these already. In so many ways, this is what equipped me best for my week on 8D.
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No one knew what to expect
Amber Clay, Vascular Technologist
Back in March we had our first special pathogens patient order show up in the DVU work queue and others quickly followed. As a group, we were thinking, this is really happening in our hospital and it is absolutely going to involve our department. I sent an email to Sandy and she, Erika and Dr. Vemuri came to the lab to discuss the situation. The DVU group all had a little bit of anxiety of the unknown. Nobody knew what to expect. But one thing was clear we knew we had the support from Vascular Surgery.
In March I went from looking forward to working in the OR, to being called up to Team A and only working weekends. The first weekend I worked we had multiple orders for patients in the RICU. Going to the RICU for the first time felt a little like a movie set. Even when entering it felt surreal. You enter one set of doors and they shut behind you as you stand there waiting for the next set to open. Those 5 seconds felt so long that first day. The second set of doors opened and I entered our new norm. The RICU had just opened and everyone was still adapting. I first learned how to don and doff my PPE moments before scanning my first patient. I actually felt a sense of relief after scanning my first patient. I was able to get a set of proper PPE and the anxiety of the unknown had subsided. The first patient I scanned was critically ill, on CRRT and being considered for ECMO. The study was challenging, plus the donning and doffing along with disinfecting the machine was a long process. With the amount of patients predicted it was clear we needed to come up with a plan.
The following week we were able to establish a group of physicians, administration and vascular techs to devise a plan to limit vascular exams. The DVU COVID Task Force included Erika Arndt, Dr. Barnes, Sandy Brown, Amber Clay, Dr. Eliason, Dr. Henke, Dr. Obi, Candy Nighswander, and Dr. Wakefield. We also discussed proper cleaning process for equipment, surgical drapes and single use gel packets, limiting exposure to our general patients. I was lucky enough to be a part of the DVU COVID Task Force. It was amazing to see everyone come together to establish a plan to protect the vascular techs while still providing care for COVID-19 patients. We met daily to discuss the exams ordered and using the algorithm determined if the exam was warranted. We met virtually every day at 11:30 over the blue jeans app as long as there were cases to discuss. We even met on Easter Sunday and Mother’s day. It really was amazing to see how dedicated everyone was to this task.
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Transitioning from Saturday day shift to night shift (pictured): Amber Clay, Brad Geiersbach, and Kiley Crego
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Ready to take care of CVC patients (pictured): Supervisor Candy Nighswander, Shannon Strachn-Dyer, and Valerie Murphy
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Adaptability, resilience and compassion
Sandy Brown, DVU Manager
Amber writes about teamwork and dedication. I would like to expand on that a bit and discuss the adaptability, resilience and compassion that was shown by the DVU staff during this difficult time. Erika, Candy and I had one afternoon to work out a schedule using the Lombardi model that divided the staff into Team A and Team B and scheduled them out for two months. This was not easy task and I would like to thank Erika for her thoughtfulness and mad Excel skills that helped keep everything straight! Of course this schedule was a far departure from anything the staff had been asked to do before, and although we had prepared them, there were concerns for the reaction when the schedule was sent.
When the schedule was received, and everyone’s schedule was thrown upside down and turned inside out, and did not resemble anything they had done the week before, there was acceptance and understanding. When we had to change the schedule because UMMG decided to contract and collapse all CV Service Lines, including testing into the CVC, the staff adapted. With the ever changing situation and information stream the staff showed they are resilient. Everyone worked together to adapt and change. The majority of the staff called into the daily huddles, every day, whether they were working or not, yes at first because it was the best way to share the rapidly changing information, but then because it was a time to support each other, through the good and the bad. Jeremy even shared some bad Dad jokes!
Many of the techs who worked on the inpatient side and scanned many of the COVID patients, and especially those working in the RICU, spoke of the sadness they felt for those patients who were so sick, yet all alone and that they wished they could do more. The team overcame the unknown fear of being exposed to the virus and the apprehension of the new PPE guidelines and rules. Our team had trust in our physicians not to put them in harm’s way. Through all of this, the techs were able to adapt and the compassion for our patients was able to shine through.
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Michigan Medicine Field Hospital Planning: Leadership from Vascular Surgery
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Dr. Dawn Coleman
Dr. Jon Eliason
When faced with a worldwide pandemic the likes of which had not been seen since the 1960’s, feelings of uncertainty, concern and confusion were prevalent. Michigan Medicine was not sure how many patients would need to receive care or the severity of the illness and intensity of staffing which would be required to care for them. Limitations in personal protective equipment was a very real concern. In the midst of these factors, Michigan Medicine leadership formulated a plan to accommodate from 500 to 1,500 additional patients beyond our typical health care capacity. After careful review of multiple locations, the Michigan South Athletic Complex crystalized as the ideal location for a potential field hospital. In a unique coordination and collaboration with the state of Michigan, and with a leadership team comprised of business strategy experts, physicians and nurses, a robust plan was set in place to organize the facility, personnel, and infrastructure to handle a surge of coronavirus patients if needed. Vascular surgeons Dawn Coleman and Jon Eliason were the physician leads for this effort. Thankfully, although the impact of COVID-19 remains devastating for many, the field hospital remains only in the planned phase. This plan is now fully vetted and organized which leaves Michigan Medicine ready to spin up a field hospital to operational capacity if needed in about 10 days.
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Pictured is the Michigan South Athletic Complex, which could accommodate 500 to 1,500 additional patients as a field hospital.
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Vascular Surgeons Jon Eliason and Dawn Coleman in action as part of the Field Hospital planning team and command center.
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Virtual Care During the Covid Pandemic
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Dr. Chandu Vemuri
Our Section has a robust outpatient practice and prior to the pandemic we had clinic in Ann Arbor, Brighton and Northville. As COVID spread, we simultaneously contracted our in-person clinic and diagnostic vascular lab visits and expanded our virtual care practice. Within two weeks nearly all of the Faculty and our advanced practice provider team learned how to conduct video and phone virtual visits. During March, April and May the majority of our visits were conducted virtually and this allowed us to create meaningful care plans for patients, answer their questions and concerns and to schedule procedures. As the state re-opens we are re-opening our outpatient clinics and we will continue to use virtual care to provide care for patients. Currently, each provider has created a virtual clinic for this purpose and by the Fall we hope to have a re-designed strategy that will identify patients whose clinical needs may be best served by virtual care. We plan to use existing and emerging technologies to provide patient-centered virtual care solutions for our patients both now and in the future.
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Dr. Dawn Coleman
The events that continue to unfold across our Country warrant attention and discussion. I am heartbroken, we are hurting, with the continued violence against people of color, and with the recent deaths of Ahmaud Arbery, Michael Brown, Eric Garner, Laquan McDonald, Breonna Taylor, Tamir Rice, Walter Scott, George Floyd and others. The COVID-19 pandemic has only highlighted more clearly continued racial disparities, as we watch more black people die from this disease respectively than any other race globally.
We can do better
. Our black vascular surgery trainees and partners cannot thrive if they do not feel safe, if mistreatment defines their daily life.
We must do better
. The personal well-being of the surgical trainees at the University of Michigan is my priority, and I am further committed to the global wellness of our membership and Vascular Surgery workforce. I stand with my black colleagues and I acknowledge their trauma and pain. I want to be part of the solution. We will be part of the solution - together alongside our Department of Surgery colleagues at Michigan Medicine and our Vascular Surgery family more broadly, without relying on our minority colleagues to teach us about racism. We will be accountable for ourselves, and proactive in mitigating the effects of racism at our Institutions and within our Societies by: implementing structural curriculum and competencies that consider micro-aggressions, implicit bias and factors that produce health disparities; actively addressing mistreatment; providing a platform to talk constructively about racism; and we will continue to recruit diverse excellence in our house officers and faculty. I urge us all to support, to outreach, to not be silent during this time. 'Silence is now political. Either engage, or assist the harm. There is no third choice.' ~D. Berwick, JAMA, 2017
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A
Day In the Life of: Cathy Luke
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Cathy is a Research Associate with Dr. Henke's Lab -- she was recently awarded a Staff Impact Award with the University of Michigan. This award celebrates volunteerism, service and those who go above and beyond. Cathy's nomination was selected out of 75 nominations due to her daily contributions, collaboration across units and her problem-solving abilities. Congratulations Cathy on this well-deserved award!
Cathy Luke, LVT, LAT, AAS
After graduating from Veterinary Technology school, way back in 1990, I worked for a couple years in a small animal vet clinic. I loved the work, but looked for something more substantial. I was hired by the University of Michigan Unit for Laboratory Animal Science in 1992 as an animal husbandry technician. I had special interest in animal anesthesia and surgery and when a position opened up with the Department of Surgery Animal Surgery Operating Rooms (now run by ULAM), I applied without hesitation. I worked for ASOR for 5 years before landing a position as Research Associate with Dr. Lazar Greenfield studying vena cava filters in sheep and pulmonary embolism in the rat model. Upon Dr. Greenfield’s retirement, my research career was in a bit of flux, I became the Jobst Vascular Research Labs administrative assistant and Department of Surgery post-award grant assistant (a dual appointment). This side track from animal research was a great opportunity for me to learn more about lab management, and research grant funding, budgeting and spending. When a position opened up with Dr. Henke, I eagerly transitioned back to the lab. I’ve been working with Dr. Henke for the past 15 years studying the inflammatory response and resolution of deep vein thrombosis and post-thrombotic syndrome in the mouse model. We hope to find therapies that may lessen the symptoms of PTS.
As you can see, my career has always been centered around animals. Last fall, I was hand selected to be one of 19 senior laboratory animal professionals from laboratories across the University to participate in the inaugural Laboratory Animal Research Coordinator Course (LARCC) given by the Animal Care and Use Office (ACUO). This group of chosen professionals (some are friends and colleagues I’ve known for years) not only participated in learning more about lab animal use, we were also tasked with helping to shape the course for the future. This course was intensive, with a treasury of information from the history of animal research to modern day compliance to laboratory management and training to protocol submission to safety and beyond. All packed into 40 hours over 10 weeks. This was an a-maize-ing learning and collaborative experience! On February 17
th
, there was a formal graduation ceremony where I received my certificate of completion. To be chosen for this course by my peers and colleagues within the animal care and use community was a huge honor for which I’m humbled and grateful. I work very hard on a daily basis to recognize and act on the reality that using animals for research is a privilege, not a right. I highly recommend every lab animal professional take this course for a better understanding and collaboration with our Animal Care and Use Program.
More recently, on April 17
th
, during the midst of the uncertainty of the pandemic, I received an email that I was chosen as a recipient of the prestigious Staff Impact Awards (SIA). The website states, “The awards celebrate staff who champion volunteerism and service within the University – going above and beyond by taking on additional challenges.” Abbie Dowling and my fellow Jobst Labs comrades nominated ME for this award! Thank you gang! Although, I immediately thought about our hardworking Jobst Labs team. We were apart due to COVID-19, but working together from home to make sure our lab remained compliant and safe and productive. I’m just one player on this team, one cog in this wheel. We all have a set of skills and expertise that we bring to the lab daily. We collaborate and assist each other to achieve better science. Being singled out by my colleagues for this award is humbling and makes me grateful to be part of the Jobst Labs family!
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A few brief updates on some trainee happenings these past few months:
- Pre-COVID, Bobby Beaulieu presented at the annual meeting for the American Venous Forum in March
- Frank Davis was awarded the Young Investigator Award at the Moses Gunn Research Conference for his work with Dr. Gallagher on epigenetic modifications and macrophage-mediated inflammation in abdominal aortic aneurysms
- Gloria Kim presented a poster at Moses Gunn based on her work with Dr. Corriere on grip strength and frailty for older patients with cardiovascular disease
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Dr. Beaulieu presenting at AVF
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Dr. Davis, Moses Gunn Young Investigator Awardee
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Drs. Corriere & Kim at Moses Gunn
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- The Vascular Surgery program embraced virtual teaching conferences and unique remote learning opportunities during the pandemic.
- Chris Audu and his mentor Dr. Gallagher were awarded an NIH F32 Award for the "Role of Notch in Diabetic Wound Macrophages" - more great work to come from Dr. Audu's Academic Development Time
- The 18th Annual Greenfield Research Lectures and Award was held virtually in May
- Frank Davis was awarded the Lindenauer Research Award
- Frank Davis and Gloria Kim's abstracts are under consideration for the Jay D. Coffman Young Investigator Award and were selected for presentation at the 2020 Society for Vascular Medicine Annual Scientific Sessions
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In June we held a virtual graduation for Drs. Beaulieu and Boniakowski before their departures to Ohio State University and Maine Medical Center, respectively. Congratulations Bobby and Anna - you will be missed!
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Welcome to Drew Braet, MD, our incoming integrated Vascular Surgery Resident!
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Welcome to Kai Hata, MD, our incoming Vascular Surgery Fellow!
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Chief Talk Reflection: Rabbits, Tiggers, and Bears, oh my!
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Dr. Anna Boniakowski, Graduating Vascular Surgery Integrated Resident
As any Rabbit would, I began planning my chief talk last year. Little did I know, the topics I would discuss would become especially apparent during the evolution of the COVID-19 pandemic. My theme revolved around the importance of intellectual diversity in successful leadership and team building- something that had all of a sudden become even more important than ever in the setting of a rising global healthcare crisis. I referenced Bob Quinn’s Harvard Business Review article “Moments of Greatness,” where he describes the fundamental state of leadership- the state in which we lead when a crisis forces us to tap into our deepest values and instincts. In this state, we instinctively know what we need to do.
Well, we certainly are facing our crisis with the COVID pandemic. Our lives have been uprooted. With our sense of security revoked, our normal and routine now undefined, and our lives at risk, the anxiety is palpable. But amidst this catastrophe, something beautiful has happened. Our colleagues- the Tiggers, the Rabbits, the Winnie the Poohs and others alike, or rather,
different
- united to respond to the COVID numbers that were exponentially rising in Michigan. Within 48 hours, there were tangible plans for creation of a local field hospital as well as complete restructuring of our patient care model to accommodate the upcoming surge of patients. I witnessed the benefits of the whole cast of characters in action through my mentors and peers. It was really incredible to watch such a huge transition occur so quickly and effectively. A couple of days later, we were successfully caring for hundreds of sick COVID patients.
I feel so fortunate to have had the opportunity to train at Michigan Medicine. The personal and professional growth I have undergone is enormous, all because of rich opportunity and incredible mentors. I have fond memories of each experience that has pushed me towards being more comfortable outside of my own comfort zone. During a recent open abdominal aortic aneurysm repair with one of my most impactful mentors, he could tell I was becoming more timid as I began dissecting around a treacherous area. He said, “You’re being a Rabbit.” I just smiled and said, “I’ll take that as a compliment.” I thought to myself, I actually
like
being a Rabbit. Sometimes I just need a gentle reminder that I can use it to my advantage. As Piglet always said, “The things that make me different are the things that make me.”
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A Brief Bulletin of Research Happenings
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Throughout our quarterly newsletters, we will be providing brief updates from a sample of our research labs and happenings.
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From Dr. Henke:
Our lab has been working to piece together how monocytes and macrophages (Mo/MØ) affect vein wall remodeling over time after a venous thrombosis (VT) event and its long term progression to development of post thrombotic syndrome (PTS). Through these studies using several macrophage depletion models, we’ve shown that altering the macrophage presence in the vein wall may prove therapeutic and possibly lessen the effect of PTS. Our preliminary work has brought us a newly funded NIH grant to further tease out the Mo/MØ mechanism related to VT.
We are nearing the end of a NIH grant studying the effect of IL6 on DVT and PTS. Early work has identified IL-6 signaling as important to inflammation of the vein wall and scarring at late time points. Mouse models with genetically deleted IL6 have showed less inflammation and fibrosis, suggesting a potential new therapeutic target for PTS. However, IL6 does appear to be important for early resolution.
We recently published a novel method to study the contraction and relaxation of murine veins using myography. Results from this study suggest VT impairs endothelial function while retaining vascular smooth muscle cell function and might be a mechanism that promotes PTS, beyond simply obstruction and valvular dysfunction.
Histological evaluation of collagen and fibrin deposition has been a continuous battle for our laboratory. Immunohistochemistry and protein analysis is difficult with our specimens. Over the past 2 years, we’ve perfected a trichrome stain to aid in this evaluation called Lendrum’s Martius Scarlet Blue. Analysis of murine VT samples showed fibrin peaks between 8 and 14 days post VT and collagen deposition is slow over time, peaking at 21 days. Human venous stent tissue was evaluated, which showed patients with a higher proportion of collagen were less likely to re-occlude stents by 1 year. These imaging findings seem to be similar to what happens in humans.
On the horizon: We are collaborating with Alisa Wolberg, PhD at University of North Carolina, to study the role of FXIII in venous thrombosis and also with Bo Liu, PhD at University of Wisconsin, to gain preliminary data looking at necroptosis in our DVT models.
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Qing Cai, MS, Research Lab Specialist Intermediate
:
Qing Cai, has a Master’s degree in Pharmacology/Toxicology. She has experience in a variety of cell and molecular techniques. She is responsible for the majority of the lab's bench work including protein and RNA extraction, Western Blot, RT-PCR, Elisa, immuohistochemistry and immunofluorescence. She also contributes to data collection and analysis, manuscript writing for presentations and publications.
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Abbie Dowling, MD, Post-Doctoral Fellow:
After returning to research in 2013, Abbie obtained her first author paper on fertility and metabolism at the University of Toledo, spent 2 years as Post-Doctoral Trainee at Cornell University, and has now made it to University of Michigan, Conrad Jobst Vascular Research Lab and joined the Henke Lab in 2017 as a post-doctoral fellow. Her work involves phenotyping subsets of macrophages and relating that to clot formation and vein wall remodeling in the mouse model of DVT. She has been instrumental in continuing myograph work, flow cytometry staining and analysis and mouse microsurgery and many other molecular biology techniques.
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Cathy Luke, LVT, Research Associate:
Cathy is our lab manager of 15 years. She has deep roots in laboratory animal use and care. She has over 20 years of experience in laboratory research and animal surgical models, especially the mouse DVT model. She is involved with every stage of project management from grant submission and budgeting, study design, microsurgery, immunohistochemistry and immunofluorescence, data analysis and manuscript writing.
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John Nicklas:
John worked in our laboratory as an undergraduate from Brown University for 2 summers (2018 and 2019). His first summer he was a CVC undergraduate fellow working on histological characterization of human venous stent tissue and mouse venous thrombosis samples. He continued his work in collaboration with Aviva during his second summer.
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Aviva Gordon:
Aviva worked in our lab as an undergraduate from Rice University for one year in 2018 and 2019. She was instrumental in continuing the histological work that John started on human and mouse tissue samples. She presented, Natural History of Stasis-Induced Deep Vein Thrombosis in a Murine Model and Application in the Clinical Setting: A Histochemical Approach, this past February at the American Venous Forum in 2020.
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Alan Metz:
Currently a medical student here at University of Michigan, Alan perfected our myographic technique to study venous contraction and relaxation for 2 summers (2017 and 2018). This important work was recently published.
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Awards, Recaps & Recognition
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We know there is great work happening all over the Section! Here's a collection of some of the awards, event recaps and recognition from this quarter. If we missed anything from your area, let us know so we can include it in the next issue.
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- At the end of February, we hosted our 8th Berguer Lecture on Ethics with Elliot L. Chaikof, MD, PhD, Surgeon-in-Chief at Beth Isreal Deaconess Medical Center and the Johnson and Johnson Professor of Surgery at Harvard Medical School. Dr. Chaikof's lecture was titled "On the Ethics of Value" and he was quoted as saying "the greatest challenges aren't the ones that you seek out, but those that hit you on the side of the head." Dr. Chaikof is pictured here with Dr. Berguer and faculty for fellowship after the lecture. You can view the full lecture here.
- At the March annual meeting for the American Venous Forum, there were multiple presentations by our faculty, including by Drs. Henke, Obi, Osborne and Wakefield.
- Dr. Gallagher was inducted, virtually, into the American Society of Clinical Investigators (ASCI) in April. ASCI is an honor society with over 3,000 of physician-scientists in the upper ranks of academic medicine and industry.
- Dr. Henke led a new AHA policy statement on a call to action to prevent Venous Thromboembolism in Hospitalized Patients.
- Dr. Figueroa presented a Virtual Physiological Human (VPH) Institute keynote webinar, entitled "Computational Modeling Tools for Cardiovascular Disease Research, Surgical Planning and Diagnostics" in May
- Dr. Obi provided a presentation on VTE and COVID during a Society for Vascular Surgery National Town Hall in May.
- Dr. Wakefield was quoted in an article on blood thinners and COVID patients by The Washington Post for his expertise in venous disease.
- Dr. Coleman initiated and moderated a 'Let us not be silent' Society of Vascular Surgery event with members of their DEI Task Force and Wellness Task Force.
- Dr. Obi received a fundable score in June on her K08 application.
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"Congratulations to our own
Dr. Nick Osborne, who was awarded the WW Coon Award from the General Surgery Chiefs at their June graduation – the Highest Honor that a Michigan surgical faculty can obtain from the chief residents in General Surgery. I knew Dr. Coon very well – he was one of my teachers and one of the most respected persons at Michigan. He was a great surgeon, a great teacher, and a great person – so to win the Coon award is a tremendous accomplishment. Nick, you are all of these and more – I could not be more proud of you."
- Tom W.
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2020 Excellence in Education Teaching Award
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Dr. Wakefield was awarded the 2020 Vascular Surgery Teaching Award from the vascular surgery trainees in recognition of his excellence and dedication to teaching. The award was presented to him by graduating resident, Dr. Boniakowski at the virtual graduation ceremony. A well-deserved award for Dr. Wakefield!
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Society for Vascular Surgery Annual Meeting
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The Annual Meeting for the Society for Vascular Surgery was moved to online programming that occurred from June 20 to July 2. SVS Online was focused on 'New Discoveries and Advances in Vascular Surgery.' Michigan Medicine’s Vascular Surgery team had a strong virtual showing among team members who participated and presented.
Among the many highlights from SVS Online, include:
- During the Stanley Crawford Critical Issues Forum: Defining and Valuing Vascular Surgery in the Coming Decade, Dr. Coleman presented on "Maintaining Vascular Capability in Troubled Times: Update from the SVS Wellness Task Force"
- Dr. Coleman moderated an invited session on enhancing wellness in times of chaos; in addition to digitally moderating a scientific session on new technology in vascular health
- Dr. Corriere moderated a scientific session on the diagnosis and treatment of vascular disease of which Dr. Coleman was a panelist along with the session presenters
- In the William J. von Liebig Forum, student Chetanya Pai, BS (mentor: Dr. Coleman), presented "Early Thrombus Resolution Following Iatrogenic Pediatric Femoral Artery Injury" (co-authors include Drs. Beaulieu, Coleman, Eliason, Magnum)
Scientific session presentations by:
- Dr. Craig Brown, trainee, titled "Effect of Concomitant Deep Venous Reflux on Truncal Endovenous Ablation Outcomes in the Vascular Quality Initiative" (co-authors include Drs. Henke, Kim, Obi, Osborne, and Wakefield)
- Dr. Corriere, titled "Characterizing Treatment Preference “Phenotypes” Among Patients with Symptomatic Peripheral Artery Disease to Support Identification of Concordant Treatment and Communication Strategies"
- Dr. Corriere, titled "Translating Tracked Activity into Outcomes, Interventions, and Surveillance for Peripheral Artery Disease: Challenges, Opportunities, and Practice Gaps"
- Dr. Corriere, VESS Paper Session titled "Multicenter, Randomized, Crossover Study Comparing Digital Health Intervention with Fitbit Tracking versus Usual Care with Patient Self-Report for Claudication Exercise Adherence and Patient-Reported Outcomes"
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Welcome to the New Additions to the Vascular Family!
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Dr. Vasilina Filonova, Assistant Research Scientist with the Computational Vascular Biomechanics Lab, welcomed her second child, Victor, on Tuesday, April 28th. Welcome Victor to the Vascular Surgery family!
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With the departure of Heather Golden, former Clinical Research Coordinator, for a promotion with the Clinical Trials Support Office - we are thrilled to welcome Linda Batrow to the Section. Linda is an integral member of the Dr. Corriere Lab as a current study coordinator and research area specialist. She will be with the Section part-time as the Clinical Research Coordinator, as she continues to support Dr. Corriere's Lab.
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Vascular Surgery Headlines
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"They Put Him Back Together Again"
How Michigan Medicine helped one patient get back to mobility and life after a seven-story fall left him critically injured and paralyzed.
Read more
healthblog.uofmhealth.org
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Telemedicine Expedites Critical Treatment for Patient...
David Wallace's virtual visits weren't only more convenient, they led the way to urgent surgery when experts had no time to waste.
Read more
healthblog.uofmhealth.org
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Study suggests 90% of aortic aneurysm papers do not...
S TEAMBOAT SPRINGS, Colo.- Almost 90% of authors who received industry-reported payments did not disclose a financial conflict of interest in their manuscript, a study exploring the issue of compensation made to physician-specialist authors of...
Read more
vascularspecialistonline.com
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Wellness: Of dreaming in blood and the 'moral injury'...
Vascular surgeons continue to serve at the frontline of healthcare, frequently responding to crisis and balancing life and limb. As chair of the Society for Vascular Surgery (SVS) Wellness Task Force, and a busy vascular surgeon, I am acutely...
Read more
vascularspecialistonline.com
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Epigenetic Regulation of TLR4 in Diabetic Macrophages...
Macrophages are critical for the initiation and resolution of the inflammatory phase of wound healing. In diabetes, macrophages display a prolonged inflammatory phenotype preventing tissue repair. TLRs, particularly TLR4, have been shown to...
Read more
www.jimmunol.org
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