The Working Group has constituted a board which is elected by the working group members every two years. Presently, the chairman of the Working Group is Dieter Horstkotte, MD, FESC, FACCP. The co-chairman is Maria Lengyel, MD, FESC, FACC. The secretary is Wilhelm Mistiaen, MD and the treasurer Heinz Völler, MD.
There is a scientific office of the Working Group which is located at the site of the chairperson.
During the recent years, we had the following activities:
(a) Postgraduate course: Modern aspects of antithrombotic treatment.
(b) Point of care symposium in
The results of the
Valve Disease.
(c) There is a formal cooperation between the Working Group and the ISMAA
(International Self-monitoring Association for oral Anticoagulation).
(d) Since 2005, the following business meetings of our Working Group were
held
- Paris 2003 (constitutional session)
- Düsseldorf 2004
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(e) On behalf of the Working Group, the following publications were made
- Horstkotte D et al. Recommendations for reporting morbid events after heart valve
surgery. J Heart Valve Dis 2005;14:1-7
- Lengyel M. et al. Recommendations for the management of prosthetic valve
thrombosis. J Heart Valve Dis 2005;14:567-575
- Horstkotte D et al. Recommendations for post-discharge patient follow-up after
cardiac valve interventions: A Position Paper. J Heart Valve Dis 2007 (in press)
(f) Officials of our Working Group have published the following editorials
- Horstkotte D et al. Discontinuing oral anticoagulation therapy.
J Heart Valve Dis. 2007;16:282-4
- Horstkotte D et al. Management of active infective endocarditis complicated by large
vegetations. J Heart Valve Dis 2006;15:563-6
- Horstkotte D et al. Cardiac resynchronization therapy as an alternative to valve
replacement in high-risk patients with a chronically decompensated aortic stenosis?
J Heart Valve Dis 2005;15:203-5
The Board of the Working Group will discuss the proposals of the executive committee during the next meeting and will support the ideas appropriately.
Dieter Horstkotte, MD, FESC