Historian Corner

George H. Thompson, MD
SRS Historian

This year, we celebrate the 25^th International Meeting on Advanced Spine Techniques (IMAST). Originally named the American-European Meeting on Pedicle Fixation of the Spine & Other Advanced Techniques, the first meeting was held July 1-2, 1994 in Munich, Germany.

IMAST was, in part, created in response to the pedicle screw litigation of the 1990s. The first meeting was held to teach attendees spine surgery techniques that could not be taught in the US due to the FDA restrictions during the litigation. Prior to the establishment of IMAST, there was an SRS-NASS Pedicle Screw Fixation Course, however, NASS elected not to be a part of IMAST. IMAST has grown to be an important component of the SRS educational program.

Did you know?
There have only been six IMAST Chairs:

1. Randal Betz
2. Lawrence Lenke
3. Todd Albert
4. Christopher Shaffrey
5. Ronald Lehman
6. Henry Halm

 

Chair: George H. Thompson Committee: Behrooz A. Akbarnia, Past Chair; Jay Shapiro; David B. Bumpass (C); Pooria Hosseini (C); Ahmed S. Mohamed (C); Hani H. Mhaidli; Andrew G. King; Acke Ohlin (E); Patricia N. Kostial (A)