PSANZ Annual Congress a big success having gone virtual in 2021

The Perinatal Society of Australia & New Zealand (PSANZ) annual congress aims to “broaden perspectives of perinatology; stimulate research activity; present scientifically rigorous and valid new information and provide a forum to debate this new information and other ideas”. And the congress in 2021 was more important than ever, having been cancelled in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic. The decision was made to hold a virtual conference in 2021 to minimise risk to the society and PSANZ embraced the great benefits of running a conference online. All presentations were recorded and are still available to view on the congress website for registered delegates and delegates from around the world who were unable to attend in person, joined the conference online.

From the CRE in Newborn Medicine, we had wonderful representation with:

• 6 team members involved in chairing sessions (some multiple times)
• 12 Presented Abstracts
  • Dr Karli Treyvaud, Improved Parent-Child Relationships From a Web-Based Early Intervention After Preterm Birth
  • Shiraz Badurdeen (PhD candidate), Rapid Wean of Supplemental Oxygen following Return of Spontaneous Circulation (ROSC) reduces Cerebral Oxygen Exposure and Improves Mitochondrial Function in Near-term Asphyxiated Lambs
  • Professor Jeanie Cheong, Two-Year Neurodevelopment in Extremely Preterm Infants: Changes Over 25 Years in Victoria
  • Professor Alicia Spittle, Physical Activity in Very Preterm and Term-born Preschool Age Children.
  • Associate Professor Louise Owen, What Effect Does The Use Of Deferred Consent Have Within A Neonatal Resuscitation Trial?
  • Fran Finlayson (PhD candidate), Implementation of an Early Detection of Cerebral Palsy Clinic in Victoria
  • Claire Kelly (PhD Candidate), Longitudinal Development of Brain White Matter Fibre Density and Morphology in Children Born Very Preterm
  • Anna Kidman (PhD Candidate), Retrospective Audit of Pre-Extubation Mean Airway Pressure and Extubation Failure in Extremely Preterm Infants
  • Professor Jeanie Cheong, Altered Adiposity in Extremely Preterm/Extremely Low Birthweight Young Adults
  • Professor Alicia Spittle, Early General Movements in Very Preterm and Term Born Infants Are Associated With Developmental Outcomes at 4.5–5 Years
  • Rosemary Yates (PhD Candidate), Mental Health Disorders in Very Preterm Children at 7 and 13 Years: Prevalence and Stability
  • Simonne Collins (PhD Candidate), Development of Brain White Matter and Performance in Mathematics in Children Born Very Preterm and Full-Term
• 1 Plenary session presentation
  • Anna Kidman (PhD Candidate), Preventing Extubation Failure in Preterm Infants With Non-Invasive Respiratory Support
• 1 Symposium presentation
  • Dr Karli Treyvaud, The Role of Telehealth and Online Methods in Early Intervention Programs to Improve Effectiveness and Equity of Access for Families with Babies Born Prematurely

And, a very well received  Symposium chaired by Associate Prof Brett Manley (with Clare Whitehead of RWH) on Adaptive Platform Trials in Perinatology: Is this the Way Forward - Hosted by IMPACT

Finally, a very special mention goes to PhD Candidates Shiraz Badurdeen and Simonne Collins for being presented with New Investigator Awards in the medical and allied health categories, respectively. A fantastic achievement by Shiraz and Simonne.

The CRE in Newborn Medicine Executive was very proud to have had such wonderful representation at the event from our team. Read more about the 2021 PSANZ Annual Congress event and access the virtual platform here.