EUROSON 2004EUROSON 2004 was held from June 5 till June 8, 2004 in Zagreb, Croatia. EUROSON is the meeting of the European Federation of Societies for Ultrasound in Medicine and Biology (EFSUMB). This meeting was organised by EFSUMB and the Croatian Society for Ultrasound in Medicine and Biology (CASUMB). Congress presidents were Prof. Kurt Jaeger, president of EFSUMB and Prof. Ivo Drinkovic, president of the CASUMB. There were 1289 participants in the meeting and EUROSON 2004 was the largest international meeting on medical ultrasound in the year 2004. Submissions were accepted, only by Internet and all presentations had to be on CD, DVD or USB disk. All the important world manufacturers of medical ultrasound equipment and consumables were present at the exhibition. The topics at the meeting covered all clinical subjects as well as engineering and safety fields. A number of workshops and tutorials were prepared as pre congress courses. These workshops were organised by the EFSUMB as well as by the Thomas Jefferson University. Tutorials included recent stand of "classical" ultrasound imaging, Doppler studies, contrast studies and veterinary medicine. There were six parallel sessions, which is normal for meetings of this size. Complete art and science of medical ultrasound was covered in various sessions. Compared to previous congresses one could see a shift of the main scientific interest from pure cross section morphology to 3D imaging, tissue characterisation and functional diagnostics. Fast three-dimensional imaging enables a different approach to scanning where the 3D volume data are collected fast and various sections and projections are later studied without the necessity for the presence of the patient. The attractiveness of 3D data collection has stimulated development of large piezoelectric matrix probes, which is a typical cycle of interaction between engineers, developers and users (physicians). Tissue characterisation has found a new development field in the form of elastography. Elastography is a fairly old idea that only now seems to be possible to implement due to the introduction of not-very-expensive high data throughput processors. One could already see commercial instruments that use elastography in breast diagnostics. Another tissue characteristic related group of methods is the application of the second harmonic imaging, which has become a normal feature in high-end apparatus. The use of Doppler Effect is now out of its infancy and more than half of all papers have either directly or indirectly used these techniques. Contrast media of the first generation are now routinely being used but further development of contrast media is developing in the direction of erasing the fuzzy boundary between drug therapy, ultrasound diagnostics and ultrasound therapy. The gala dinner, the receptions and functions gave the meeting the appropriate international social profile. As a conclusion one can generally say that the EUROSON2004 was a successful scientific and professional meeting.
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