IR pioneers awarded at SIR

The Society of Interventional Radiology's (SIR) Gold Medal is awarded to members who have helped ensure the future of interventional radiology by advancing the quality of medicine and patient care. At this year's SIR meeting held in Seattle, March 1-6 2007, three dedicated interventional radiology pioneers were the recipients of this prestigious award.

Dr Rolf W Günther
Dr Günther is a universally recognised interventional radiologist, known for his great contributions to the specialty which have advanced not only the field itself, but patient care as well.

Throughout his career, Günther has focused on experimental and clinical work in interventional and diagnostic radiology, focusing on uroradiological, biliary, thoracic and vascular interventions, as well as the development of new techniques and devices. He has contributed to more than 540 publications and has presented over 900 lectures at national and international meetings.

Since 1984, Günther has held the position of professor and chairman for the Department of Diagnostic Radiology at the Aachen University of Technology in Aachen, Germany. He is an honorary Fellow of the Royal College of Radiologists, the British Society of Interventional Radiology, the American College of Radiology, the French Society of Radiology and the

Swiss Society of Radiology. He has also received Gold Medals from the Cardiovascular and Interventional Society of Europe (CIRSE) in 1997, and the European Congress of Radiology (ECR) in 2004.

Dr Eugene Klatte
Dr Klatte is a distinguished professor emeritus and Raymond C Beeler professor emeritus of Radiology School of Medicine, Department of Radiology, Indiana University, Indianapolis. He has greatly influenced the subspecialty of interventional radiology by being one of the founding member's of the SIR. He is one of the original leaders in vascular interventional radiology, and has published over 145 journal articles, authored eight book chapters and produced 22 abstracts.

Although his influence and advancement of interventional radiology began 50 years ago, it continues to show through those he trained, including at least two SIR Presidents and several SIR Executive Council board members. Dr Jim Benenati, medical director of the Peripheral Vascular Laboratory at the Baptist Cardiac and Vascular Institute said, "He [Klatte] is a phenomenal leader and an inspirational teacher who trained many IRs at Indiana University. He is very innovative and creative, and I personally think he is as worthy of this as anyone who has ever received the award."

Klatte has received numerous honors including Gold Medal Award of the Association of University Radiologists, 1989; Gold Medal Award of the American Roentgen Ray Society, 1991; Gold Medal Award of the Indiana Roentgen Society, 1996; and Gold Medal Award Radiological Society of North America (RSNA), 1998.

A Fellow of the American College of Chest Physicians and the American College of Radiology, although officially retired, Klatte volunteers his time by working and teaching in the Radiology Department at Riley Hospital for Children. Klatte was most recently named the Outstanding Teacher by the 60 residents in the radiology programme at Indiana University.

Dr Julio Palmaz
Through his invention of the Palmaz-Schatz stent, which was displayed at the Smithsonian Institute, Dr Julio Palmaz, brought interventional radiology to the forefront. Approved in 1994, his coronary stent made the phrase 'angioplasty and stenting' a common term for physicians and patients alike.

In regard to his many patents, Palmaz commented, "I always considered myself to be more persistent than brilliant. My ability to pursue long-term goals may be my strongest attribute." He added, "My formula for success is not surprising. It consists mainly of patience and hard work. Perhaps good luck is the next important ingredient."

A Fellow of SIR, Palmaz presented the Dotter Lecture in 2001 entitled, 'Understanding vascular devices at the molecular level is the key to progress'.

In 2006, he was inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame and became a Fellow of the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering. Palmaz is currently at UTHSC San Antonio, Texas.