American Association of Neurological Surgeons Names Alex B. Valadka, MD, FAANS, as Organization’s Past President

Newswise — Alex B. Valadka, MD, FAANS, has been named past president of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons (AANS). The association announced his appointment during the 86^th AANS Annual Scientific Meeting held in New Orleans, April 22-26, 2018.

In addition to serving as professor and chair of the Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) Department of Neurosurgery, Valadka is also a director of the American Board of Neurological Surgery (ABNS) and, most recently, served as AANS president. He has also served as chair of the Washington Committee for Neurosurgery. Prior to joining VCU, he served as chair and chief executive officer of the Seton Brain and Spine Institute in Austin, Texas, the largest and most comprehensive neuroscience program in Central Texas.

Valadka has a strong clinical and research interest in neurotrauma and critical care as evidenced by his research funding and publications. He has been an investigator and co-investigator on 18 research grants, including serving as initiating investigator on a $33.7-million Department of Defense (DOD) research consortium on mild traumatic brain injury (TBI). He is author or co-author on more than one hundred scientific papers, as well as dozens of book chapters. He co-edited the textbook Neurotrauma: Evidence-based Answers to Common Questions. 

“Health care delivery is changing very rapidly,” said Valadka. “Too much emphasis is being placed on cutting costs and piling more and more burdensome regulations on practitioners. Education and research are under assault. Worst of all, it has become too easy to lose sight of the enormous privilege of being a neurosurgeon. Even while we are fighting to preserve our patients’ access to the highest-quality neurosurgical care, we need to remember why we chose this profession: the opportunity to serve others.”

Media Representatives: The 2018 AANS Annual Scientific Meeting website’s press section will include releases on highlighted scientific research, AANS officers and award winners, Neurosurgery Awareness Month and other relevant information about the 2018 program. Releases will be posted on the 2018 AANS Annual Scientific Meeting website. If you have interest in a topic related to neurosurgery or would like to interview a neurosurgeon — either onsite or via telephone — during the event, please contact Alice Kelsey, AANS associate executive director, via email at [email protected].

About the 2018 AANS Annual Scientific Meeting: Attended by neurosurgeons, neurosurgical residents, medical students, neuroscience nurses, clinical specialists, physician assistants, allied health professionals and other medical professionals, the AANS Annual Scientific Meeting is the largest gathering of neurosurgeons in the nation, with an emphasis on the field’s latest research and technological advances. The scientific presentations accepted for the 2018 event will represent cutting-edge examples of the incredible developments taking place within the field of neurosurgery. Find additional information about the 2018 AANS Annual Scientific Meeting and the meeting program here.

Founded in 1931 as the Harvey Cushing Society, the American Association of Neurological Surgeons (AANS) is a scientific and educational association with more than 11,000 members worldwide. The AANS is dedicated to advancing the specialty of neurological surgery in order to provide the highest quality of neurosurgical care to the public. Fellows of the AANS are board-certified by the American Board of Neurological Surgery, the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada or the Mexican Council of Neurological Surgery, A.C. Neurosurgery is the medical specialty concerned with the prevention, diagnosis, treatment and rehabilitation of disorders that affect the spinal column, spinal cord, brain, nervous system and peripheral nerves.

For more information, visit www.AANS.org.