The pacific chapter annual meeting of the undersea & hyperbaric medical society

Many hyperbaric medicine practitioners, research scientists and health care providers attended the Pacific Chapter Annual Meeting of the Undersea and Hyperbaric Medical Society held in Long Beach California between October 15 and 17 (Friday through Sunday) in 2010. In the splendid interior of Hyatt Regency took place a very informative conference updating participants on the latest developments yet building on well established concepts in the field.The 2010 annual meeting was chaired by the President of UHMS Pacific Chapter Dr. Stuart Miller, hyperbaric medicine specialist from Long Beach Memorial, and an expert in wound care.There were several accompanying events and attractions including exhibits, a lottery with tickets to the Aquarium of the Pacific and hyperbaric medicine books as prizes, and UHMS Pacific Chapter Executive Committee Meeting.It was a good meeting that helped to span the gap between basic sciences and hyperbaric medicine practice. The meeting offered also in depth insight on new applications of hyperbaric oxygen and the mechanisms of treatment. Those three memorable days at Long Beach were filled with exchange of opinions, vigorous discussions and social activities. The presented material could be classed into the following categories: 1) expository lectures on hyperbaric medicine applications in diving and in different medical conditions including wound care, osteomyelitis, plastic surgery problems, cardiovascular diseases, and organ transplant, all intertwined with basic science data and the overview of experimental and clinical studies; 2) case presentations with literature review; 3) health insurance issues with regard to HBO treatment, the logistics of hyperbaric medicine procedures and specialty information.On Friday, hyperbaric medicine lectures began with an interesting presentation by Dr. Karen Van Hosen from UCSD. She gave an overview of multiple factors that determine physiological phenomena and treatment outcomes in decompression sickn