ISCFS 2015

I welcome you to attend The 16th Biennial Congress of the International Society of Craniofacial Surgery (ISCFS) will be held in Tokyo on September 14th to 18th in 2015. I am privileged to host the next Congress in Japan.

2013 Jackson Hole Congress has progressed much more in scientific aspect as well as the numbers of participants than we ever had. We are very willing to welcome many of you to participate to go beyond the level in 2015. Craniofacial surgery has been popularized by Dr. Tessier and his pioneered founding members, and has advanced steeply as well as the development of distraction technique and new technology of imaging. The society has expanded to compose of around 250 members. Looking back to the cutting edge of plastic surgery, the allograft of complete facial transplant has succeeded including facial bony framework. Just take a look at the main stream, clinical use of regenerative medicine has been started, and a new generation of iPS cell is just around the corner. However, in our craniofacial surgery the technique itself has basically hardly changed a lot. We are responsible in making our craniofacially handicapped patients happier and more satisfied by our refined technique. We have to emphasize research work in craniofacial surgery more and more, and possibly will be selected as a special lecture. We need neurosurgeons to perform craniofacial surgery safely as well as the well cooperated orthodontists and the knowledge of the oral-maxillofacial surgeons in craniofacial team. The theme of pre-congress symposium will be focused on two parts of craniofacial surgery with neurosurgeons and the hemifacial microsomia and associated deformity related with distraction. In addition, we prepare superb Tessier lecture or Ortis Monasterio lecture.

Craniosynostosis is the major part of craniofacial surgery, which is rather less frequent in Oriental population, comparing with western population. Conversely, we have more cleft lip and palate new born as epidemiological statistics tell. Microtia and related craniofacial malformations are also very important part of this society. Skull base reconstruction and craniofacial aesthetic surgery are often performed in Orientals. Genuine Craniofacial surgery, such as Craniofacial malformations, Trauma and Tumor should be definitely debated as Shark Discussion. Those are the themes in 2015. It is our Japanese colleagues’ earnest wish to provide a memorable event and that we will make every effort to achieve the successful ISCFS congress in September, 2015.

We invite you to come and join us. Tokyo is one of the biggest cities in the world. The congress site of Maihama Tokyo Bay is a very specific place located between Tokyo and Chiba - where Chiba University is located. The autumn begins in September, but Mid-September is still hot these days in Tokyo. You can enjoy end of summer. The venue is in a sunny coastal area. From Tokyo station, it takes around 20 minutes by train. We have many particular places, some of them with world heritage in Japan to take a short trip nearby Tokyo, before or after the congress, such as Yokohama, Kamakura, Nikko, Mt. Fuji, and even Kyoto. We are preparing these trips with reasonable price on one free-day in between the congress. We are sure you will enjoy our beautiful country and are very proud of the hospitality shown to foreigners by our people. You will certainly enjoy in particular the old and modern Far East Asian Japanese culture that is so different from yours.

Welcome to Tokyo, Japan in September in 2015.

Kaneshige Satoh, MD, PhD President of ISCFS Department of Plastic, Reconstructive, and Aesthetic Surgery Chiba University, Chiba, Japan