Minutes from the Fetal Working Group Business Meeting in Copenhagen 2005
Friday May 20, 08.00-08.45
Approximately 30 members attended this business meeting.
1. The minutes from the last business meeting in Munich 2004 were approved.
2. Vlasta Fesslova from Milan was welcomed as the new councillor replacing Annabelle Azancot. Annabelle was thanked for her excellent efforts and contributions as a council member of the FWG.
3. Treasurer Renate Oberhoffer reported that the balance was 13066.10 CHF on May 1st 2004 and 13670.35 CHF on May 1st 2005. Total expenses were 1472.75 CHF (115.20 were bank charges and 1357.55 CHF were costs for inviting W Tworetzky). Total income (members’ fees) were 2077.00 CHF.
4. Kirsten Heiss from Munich presented the proposal for a new FWG web page to be linked to the main AEPC web page. The design and logistics seemed very attractive, up-to-date and easy to use with lots of exciting possibilities. The ideas were also presented to several members of the AEPC council (Ingrid Oberhänsli-Weiss, Klaus Schmidt and Andras Szatmari) and it was decided that the FWG should proceed to develop this web page and that the AEPC council would discuss (in their next council meeting) whether possibly also the main AEPC web page should be transferred to this system because of its superiority over the present AEPC web solution.
5. Helena Gardiner reported on the present status of our retrospective collection of European cases of isolated fetal complete heart block. Some 40 cases have so far been collected. It was decided to continue this work and to appoint a person who can collect a more complete data set on each case by direct communication/visit to centers providing cases. Different strategies for publication were discussed and it was decided to go for a report from the FWG in CITY signed by all those providing cases.
6. Joanna Dangel presented the proposal for a European fetal database (prepared by Maria Respondek-Liberska, Zdzislaw Tobota, Joanna Dangel and Rodney Franklin on the basis of recommendations made previously by Jan Marek and Vlasta Fesslova). It was decided that Vlasta Fesslova should join this working party together with Jan Marek (not present at the meeting) and that a finalized, fully functional proposal should be presented to the FWG council not later than one month before the Basel meeting, earlier if possible.
7. Upcoming training courses and meetings
The AEPC Fetal Cardiology program for the World Congress in Buenos Aires, Argentina, 18-22 September, 2005 was presented. Gerald Tulzer announced the symposium “Doppler Ultrasound in the Fetal Examination” to be held in Oberlech, Austria, 19-24 March, 2006 (organized by Gerald Tulzer, web page www.kinderherzzentrum.at/Lech 2006) and the courses “New Horizons in Fetal Cardiology” June 2-3 and “Hands-on in Fetal echo” November 10-11 in London this year (organized by Helena Gardiner).
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Mats Mellander
Secretary FWG/AEPC