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Vein Forum

Promoting venous and lymphatic health

American Venous Forum

Journal of Vascular Surgery is the Most Cited for Chronic Venous Disease

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The Journal of International Medical Research recently published “The 100 most-cited articles on chronic venous disease: a bibliometric analysis.”

The authors used bibliometric analysis to understand characteristics and trends in the research on chronic venous disease (CVD). They searched the Thomson Reuters Web of Science citation indexing database to identify the 100 most-cited manuscripts on CVD.

The resulting articles were analyzed by title, author, institution, topic, year of publication, and country of origin. They determined that the Journal of Vascular Surgery was the most cited.

You can read the entire article here: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/0300060520918711

New Clinical Guidelines Added to the AVF Web Site

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The American Venous Forum is committed to increasing education and awareness of venous disease among healthcare professionals and promoting evidence-based best practices to ensure patients have access to the highest quality care. Creating and updating consensus clinical practice guidelines is essential to this mission.

The AVF has recently added new clinical practice guidelines to our website including Appropriate Use Criteria, Revised CEAP, and Compression Guidelines in both English and Spanish.

Click here to access these guidelines as well as those for Venous Leg Ulcers, Early Thrombus Removal, and Varicose Veins.

Advocacy Alert – CMS Preauthorizations for Vein Ablation Procedures in a Hospital Outpatient Setting

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Dear AVF Members,

On July 1, CMS will be instituting a prior authorization requirement that was announced last year.

Most vein procedures that are performed in a hospital outpatient setting will be affected by this change.

On May 28th, 2020, CMS had an Open Forum on their new program, and Dr. Mark Iafrati, Chair of the AVF Health Policy Committee participated. Dr. Iafrati has provided a summary of the Open Forum, as well as copies of the slides used.

As mentioned, this program affects prior authorization for vein ablation procedures in a hospital outpatient setting only, at this time. Of course, the concern is that in the future, this will extend to all outpatient settings. The AVF Health Policy Committee, along with our sister societies, will be monitoring for future CMS decisions concerning vein ablation policies.

Thank you to Dr. Mark Iafrati for this important information for our members.

Dr. Hal Welch
AVF President

18 Pioneers of Venous Care Gather at AVF 32nd Annual Meeting

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Before social distancing became part of our new vocabulary, the current and past Presidents of the American Venous Forum gathered on March 3rd in Amelia Island to kick off the AVF’s 32nd Annual Meeting.  The President’s Dinner, traditionally held the night before the Annual Meeting, welcomed 18 AVF Presidents from Dr. Robert Kistner (1996) to Dr. Brajesh Lal (2019).  Following a welcome from outgoing President Lal, each past leader of the American Venous Forum shared their heartfelt thoughts and recollections.  It was truly a special evening with these pioneers of venous care.

Back row (left to right): Dr. Lowell Kabnick, Dr. Peter Henke, Dr. Brajesh Lal,
Dr. Marc Passman, Dr. Joann Lohr, Dr. Robert McLafferty, Dr. Elna Masuda,
Dr. Michael Dalsing, Dr. Frank Padberg, Dr. Bo Eklof, Dr. John Blebea,
Dr. Fedor Lurie, Dr. Mark Meissner
  Front row (left to right): Dr. Seshadri Raju, Dr. Joseph Caprini, Dr. Robert Kistner,
Dr. Peter Gloviczki, Dr. Anthony Comerota, Dr. Thomas Wakefield, Dr. Thomas O’Donnell

Message from the AVF President – Harold Welch, MD

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It is my deep honor to serve you as the 33rd President of the American Venous Forum. I have been attending the AVF Annual Meeting since 1991, and truly believe the AVF is the exemplary vascular society in the world. Our mission is to promote venous and lymphatic health, and our past leaders have shown us the path to accomplish this. I am particularly grateful for our immediate Past President, Dr. Brajesh Lal, MD, whose insight and wisdom has moved us to even greater accomplishments, and to Elna Masuda, MD, Past President, and current American Venous Forum Foundation President who has re-invigorated the AVF with her thoughtful guidance, both of whom I will work closely with.

The American Venous Forum is as successful as its members can make it. The many volunteer committee members and Chairs are the driving force behind the AVF, and I thank all of them for contributing their time, ideas, and energies to the benefit of the AVF. I invite all members to get involved and further the goals of the AVF to improve venous and lymphatic health for all patients and to educate providers and the public to make life better for patients throughout the world.

In April, 2019, the AVF had a strategic planning retreat where we identified key objectives to move the AVF forward. I am pleased to say we have already made great progress with our Strategic Plan, but there remains more to be done. Implementing the plan that your AVF leadership has developed will be one of the primary goals of the coming year.

I would like to add we have an excellent Administrative staff that is willing and able to assist you with any matters you may have with the AVF.

Finally, I invite you to reach out to me directly if you have questions or concerns, utilizing the “Ask the President” link at the top of our Home Page. I will be happy to discuss with you any Forum issues. And, I hope to see you at VENOUS2021 in San Antonio, Texas, next February 24-27.

Sincerely,

Harold J. Welch, MD

Dr. Hal Welch discusses the future of the American Venous Forum

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Dr. Hal Welch discusses the future of the American Venous Forum
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