The Role of Plastics and Engineering in Vascular Surgery

Abstract

AS A charter member of the North American Chapter of the International Cardiovascular Society, it has been my privilege to serve through the 14 years of our existence on committees or as an officer, culminating in my term as president. During this brief span, our membership has grown not only in numbers, but also in scientific quality. Most of the major advances in diagnostic and therapeutic techniques in peripheral and cardiovascular disease have been made by those who number themselves as members in our chapters throughout the world. All of us, as physicians, have strived to provide new and better care for those suffering from cardiac and vascular disease. In reviewing these past years, it can be noted that increasingly we have come to depend upon an association with basic scientists and engineers in order to develop new materials and devices to further our ends. Since those developments have taken