The “Golden Scalpel” competition was organized by the editors of the “Pulse of Medicine” magazine. Entries were evaluated by an 18-member jury, composed of distinguished experts representing various fields of medicine. The award could be given for the invention of a new diagnostic or therapeutic method, the development of a new strategy related to the organization and management in health care, or the modernization of the Polish health care system through the implementation of innovative global solutions. As a result of their deliberations, the jury selected ten innovative projects and their creators, who are changing the face of Polish, and often global, medicine.
The first place - Poland's first split liver transplantation program for two adult recipients
Awarded to: Prof. Michał Grąt with the team from the Department of General, Transplant and Liver Surgery UCC MUW: Prof. Tadeusz Wróblewski, Prof. Waldemar Patkowski, Maciej Krasnodębski, MD, PhD, Krzysztof Dudek, MD, PhD, Dr. Piotr Smoter, Dr. Ireneusz Grzelak, Dr. Konrad Kobryń, Dr. Paweł Rykowski, Dr. Adam Boltuc.
The operation took place in February 2023. The launch of the split liver transplantation program was a huge medical and organizational challenge. It has helped increase the number of transplants - which is of great importance when the number of available organs is insufficient. Of course, split liver transplants are associated with an increased risk of complications. The liver is not whole, it has fewer hepatocytes, and an additional division procedure is necessary. These are very difficult operations. But most importantly, they are an opportunity for those patients who otherwise would not live to see a transplant at all.
The third place - A new method for the surgical treatment of microvascular disease....
...which is the Poland’s first implantation of a self-expanding flow reducer into the coronary sinus and a specialized outpatient clinic dedicated to the treatment of refractory angina
Awarded to: Mariusz Tomaniak, MD, PhD (project leader), Prof. Janusz Kochman, Dr. Francesco Giannini, nurse Katarzyna Pałyska, nurse Katarzyna Michalska, technician Stanisław Drozdowski, Prof. Marcin Grabowski, 1st Chair and Department of Cardiology, University Clinical Center of the Medical University of Warsaw.
The procedure was performed for the first time in July 2024. The flow reducer for the coronary sinus (A-Flux Reducer System, Vahaticor) allows an increase in the so-called total coronary reserve, which provides an opportunity to improve the quality of life in patients with severe microcirculatory dysfunction, in whom persistent chest discomfort persists despite optimization of pharmacotherapy.
The fifth place - Project: Heart in a box - the end of the ice age of Polish transplantology
Awarded to: Prof. Mariusz Kuśmierczyk, Department of Thoracic Heart Surgery and Transplantation UCC MUW (the department includes/is composed of: Clinical Department of Cardiac Surgery, Clinical Department of Thoracic Surgery, Clinical Department of Advanced Heart Failure and Transplantation, and Clinical Department of Cardiac and Pediatric Surgery).
The “box” mentioned in the project's title is OCS Trans Medics' advanced equipment. Currently, the only equipment in the world for transporting a retrieved for transplantation, still beating heart. The solutions used in it allow a 3-fold extension of the shelf life of the organ for implantation (from 4 to 12 hours). In December 2023, thanks to the commitment of doctors, the foundation's donors managed to purchase the equipment, which was donated to the department. In March 2024, Prof. Mariusz Kuśmierczyk became the first cardiac surgeon and transplantologist in Poland to start transplanting a “beating” heart transported for 12 hours in an OCS Trans Medics device.
The eight place - Development of a program of extracorporeal normothermic machine perfusion of livers for transplantation...
… in the Department of General, Transplant and Liver Surgery UCC MUW.
Awarded to: Prof. Michał Grąt, Dr. Marcin Morawski, Dr. Andriy Zhylko, Dr. Pavel Rykowski
From December 2022 to August 2024, eight normothermic perfusions were performed at the department. With this technique, it is possible to assess whether the liver taken from the donor is functioning after blood flow is restored. It is possible to perform biochemical tests, observe whether the liver secretes bile, etc. Based on this, specialists decide whether the organ can be safely used.
The tenth place – The use of electronic technologies to monitor and manage the treatment of patients with atrial fibrillation
Awarded to: Monika Gawałko, MD, PhD, the Polish research team and the Dutch research team
These are actually four projects that revolve around the development of an infrastructure for monitoring and treating patients with atrial fibrillation, the most common persistent heart rhythm disorder among adults, using electronic technologies (eHealth).
fot. "Puls Medycyny"