The American Association of Endocrine Surgeons (AAES) recently held its 41st Annual Meeting, led by local arrangements co-chairs, Professor John Porterfield, M.D., and Chief of the Endocrine Surgery Section Brenessa Lindeman, M.D., MEHP.

As Local Arrangements Co-Chairs, Porterfield and Lindeman worked alongside Program Chair Carrie Lubitz, M.D., MPH, to coordinate with vendors, create a program, and build a virtual platform for the annual meeting. This was the first time in the history of the AAES that the meeting was held virtually, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“It was an honor to bring the AAES annual meeting back on an accessible platform since we were unable to host it in Birmingham last year,” said Lindeman. “We are thrilled to announce that the AAES is planning to officially meet in person in Birmingham in spring 2023.”

Lindeman was awarded the Paul LoGergo Research Award (PLRA) for her research, “Entrustable Professional Activities in Endocrine Surgery: Ensuring Trainees are Prepared for Unsupervised Practice.” The PLRA was developed to honor the life of Paul LoGerfo, M.D., who made numerous major contributions to the field of endocrine surgery during his esteemed career. Lindeman was also named as one of two individuals joining the AAES Executive Council for a three-year term.

In addition to meeting leadership and awards, the UAB Department of Surgery was also represented by faculty and trainees participating in poster and oral presentations. Below is a list of faculty and trainees, alongside their respective presentations.

Poster Presentations

• Jordan George (MD candidate): Pre-Operative Blockade for Pheochromocytoma: Is it Time to Retire Phenoxybenzamine?
• Kimberly Ramonell, M.D.: Robotic Mediastinal Parathyroidectomy: A Contemporary Large Case Series Review
• Peter Abraham, M.D.: Resident Self-Assessment of Common Endocrine Procedures. American Association of Endocrine Surgeons
• Andrea Gillis, M.D. (incoming endocrine surgery fellow): Normocalcemic Primary Hyperparathyroidism: Is Pre-Operative Imaging Necessary?

Oral Presentations:

• Jessica Fazendin, M.D.: Surgical Treatment of Hyperthyroidism Can Be Performed Safely Before a Euthyroid State is Achieved
• Ashley Alexander, M.D. (former trainee): Two Birds with One Mass? An Ectopic ACTH-Producing Pheochromocytoma

“It was a stellar year for the Department of Surgery at the AAES Annual Meeting,” said Herbert Chen, M.D., FACS, Fay Fletcher Kerner Endowed Chair. “Our faculty and trainees did a wonderful job representing our department and its values on a national stage.”

The 42nd annual meeting will be held May 22-24 2022 in Cleveland, Ohio, and the 43rd annual meeting will be held in Birmingham in spring 2023.