AIUM to honor four individuals in the field of medical ultrasound

During the opening session of the 2012 American Institute of Ultrasound in Medicine (AIUM) Annual Convention at the JW Marriott Desert Ridge Resort and Spa in Phoenix, Arizona, on March 30, 2012, Alfred Z. Abuhamad, MD, president of the AIUM, will present awards to individuals who have significantly contributed to the growth of medical ultrasound. The vast outstanding achievements of the following recipients warrant recognition.

The William J. Fry Memorial Lecture Award recognizes one who has significantly contributed in his or her particular field to the scientific progress of medical ultrasound. This award will be given to Joshua A. Copel, MD, who is currently professor of obstetrics, gynecology, and reproductive sciences, professor of pediatrics, and vice chair of obstetrics at Yale University School of Medicine in New Haven, Connecticut. He is well known worldwide as an expert in high-risk pregnancy.

The Joseph H. Holmes Pioneer Awards will be presented to Stephanie R. Wilson, MD, for clinical science and to Charles C. Church, PhD, for basic science. Dr Wilson, who operates one of the most advanced clinical and research facilities in North America for the investigation of microbubble contrast agents for medical imaging, has been invited to lecture almost 400 times in the United States and Canada. Dr Church currently serves as senior research scientist, in addition to being an associate research professor, in the Department of Physics at the University of Mississippi. His extensive research has led to more than 100 publications to his credit, in addition to 3 patents.

J. Oscar Barahona, BS, RDMS, was elected to 2 terms on the Executive Committee as second vice president from 2007 for the AIUM, is a past member of the AIUM Board of Governors, and currently serves on the Board of Directors of the American Registry for Diagnostic Medical Sonography and on both the Legislative and the Certification Committees. He will be honored with the Distinguished Sonographer Award for his enduring dedication to medical ultrasound.

David H. Evans, PhD, DSc, and Brian J. Trudinger, MD, will be presented with the Honorary Fellow Award. Dr Evans, emeritus professor at the University of Leicester in Great Britain, is author of 2 books on Doppler ultrasound and is recognized for his promotion of ultrasound in medicine across the globe. Dr Trudinger, professor of obstetrics and gynecology at the University of Sydney and director of fetal medicine at Westmead Hospital, is licensed to practice medicine on 3 continents and is a prolific author with research interests in fetal physiology and perinatology.

The Memorial Hall of Fame will honor 4 individuals this year who contributed to the field of ultrasound in medicine. David E. Robinson, DSc, who died in 2010 was the holder of 8 patents, helped produce exceptional fetal imaging, and invented several techniques for the measurement of sound speed. Committed to the field and to the safety of ultrasound, Wesley L. Nyborg, PhD, who died on September 24, 2011, helped establish a basis for much of the current knowledge of nonthermal mechanisms by which ultrasound interacts with biological materials. Charles S. Kleinman, MD, whose work led to the birth of fetal echocardiography, died on October 11, 2011. Michael A Wainstock, MD, who died on August 2, 2010, was an influential pioneer in the use of ultrasound in ophthalmology.

Source: American Institute of Ultrasound in Medicine