Orlando, FL
We am pleased to report that ISL&T-XV in Orlando, Florida was another outstanding meeting. Our Program Chair, Dr. David Corr put together a beautiful program that was very informative and insightful. The discussion was also very lively. ISL&T-XV was attended by 136 faculty, fellows and students.
This year’s program was started with an amazing clinical talk given by Dr. Marc Philippon. The main program was comprised of 6 sessions: Biomechanics I: Healing Ligament and Tendon/ In Vivo Assessment, Tendon Mechanobiology & Stem Cell, Tissue Engineering in ACL Repair, Inflammation and Tendon Healing, Biomechanics II: Theoretical and Computational Modeling and rotator Cuff Injury and Repair.
We had the privilege this year of honoring one of our own with a special session entitled “Translational Tendon and Ligament Research – In Honor of Professor Kai-Ming Chan”. This special session included many well-known surgeons and engineers from all over the world – Drs. Mahmut Doral, Minghao Zheng, Hongwei Ouyang, Albert Banes, Ramon Cugat, James Wang, Chih-Hwa Chen, Guoan Li and of course, the opening lecture was given by Dr. K.M. Chan.
The day-long event was concluded with the traditional banquet which was held at the Ming Court Restaurant. Attendees were able to relax and socialize with fellow colleagues, fellows and students.
With the very generous support of Dr. Albert and Mrs. Beth Banes and the Flexcell International Corporation, we were able to award a total of six (6) awards this year. For the first time, we awarded three (3) Savio L-Y. Woo Young Researcher Awards – Dr. Michael Kuenzler (Biological), Ms. Kuwabo Mubyana (Biomechanical), and Dr. Thomas Teh (Translational). We also awarded the Best Student Paper to Ms. Diana Zhu, Best Poster to Mr. Ryan Russell and the Best Fellow Paper to Dr. Christopher Camp.
We were fortunate to receive continuous financial support from our loyal sponsors, Flexcell International Corporation, ASIAM Institute, the Musculoskeletal Research Center, Steadman Philippon Research Institute, and the Department of Bioengineering at the University of Pittsburgh. In addition, this year we received generous support from OrthoCell and the Cleveland Clinic.
As an added surprise at the banquet, Dr. K.M. Chan announced that the Chinese University of Hong Kong would support ISL&T in the amount of US$10,000 each year for the next 4 years. He was followed by Mr. Paul Anderson, Managing Director of OrthoCell Ltd, he announced that they would match K.M. with the same donation for the next 4 years. With these commitments, we believe that ISL&T will be on solid financial footing to continue our mission.
Savio L-Y. Woo Young Researcher Award Dr. Michael Kuenzler Biological Research
Ms. Kuwabo Mubyana Biomechanical Research
Dr. Thomas Teh Translational Research
Best Fellow Paper Dr. Christopher Camp
Best Student Paper Ms. Diana Zhu
Best Poster Mr. Ryan Russell