About
The European Society of Cardiovascular Radiology (ESCR) is a non-profit medical society based in Vienna, Europe, dedicated to promoting and advancing cardiovascular imaging by offering Annual Scientific Meetings, workshops, webinars, as well as other scientific and educational events.
Dear ESCR members, dear colleagues and friends,
We are living in exciting times for cardiovascular radiologists. Over the past decade, our field has undergone a continuous and unprecedented evolution as new clinical insights and advancing technology significantly enhance our knowledge of different pathophysiological processes. Our role is steadily increasing, not only for the diagnosis of disease, but also in helping in determining outcome, as such playing an important role in the clinical care of patients and becoming actively involved in patient management.
As presented in our ‘”Cardiac radiology in Europe” paper of 2023, we as a society focus on supporting and strengthening the role of cardiac cross-sectional imaging in Europe from a multi-modality perspective. Together with the European Society of Radiology (ESR), it is our task to sustain, increase and optimize the quality and availability of cardiovascular imaging and experienced radiologists across Europe. For this, we provide different avenues for support. Our annual meeting is not only a highly regarded scientific event, but also a great place for networking across different countries and societies. We also enhance training in cardiovascular radiology through several open-access consensus documents on a variety of topics, an increasingly large offering of online webinars, and support through both online and in-person workshops. Also, our ESCR Young Club has become an increasingly active group, reaching out to different countries and, as such, further enhancing our community across borders.
As ESCR 2024-2026 president, and together with an ever outstanding Executive Committee and subcommittees, it will be our honour to continue on the path we have established and serve our community for many years to come.
Statutes
The ESCR Society Statutes are available for download/viewing as PDF documents:
COMMITTEES (2024-2026)
EXECUTIVE BOARD
| President | R. Salgado, Antwerp/BE |
| Vice President | M. Francone, Milan/IT |
| Past President | R. Vliegenthart, Groningen/NL |
| Secretary | R. Budde, Rotterdam/NL |
| Treasurer | B. Wintersperger, Toronto/CA |
| Chairperson Scientific Committee | H. Alkadhi, Zurich/CH |
| Chairperson Education & EBCR Committee | M. Hrabak-Paar, Zagreb/HR |
| Chairperson Membership Committee | G. Muscogiuri, Bergamo/IT |
| Chairperson Communication & New Media Committee | F. Pontana, Lille/FR |
| Chairperson Guidelines Committee | M. Williams, Edinburgh/UK |
| Member | C. Loewe, Vienna/IT |
| Member |
K. Nikolaou, Tuebingen/DE |
| Member | M. Pirnat, Maribor/SI |
SCIENTIFIC & MRCT REGISTRY COMMITTEE
Chairperson
Hatem Alkadhi, Zurich/CH
Members
Sara Boccalini, Lyon/FR
Jordi Broncano, Córdoba/ES
Federica Catapano, Milan/IT
Tilman Emrich, Mainz/DE
Matthias Gutberlet, Leipzig/DE
Alexander Isaak, Bonn/DE
Milan Vecsey-Nagy, Charleston/US
Jonathan Weir-McCall, Cambridge/UK
MEMBERSHIP COMMITTEE
Chairperson
Giuseppe Muscogiuri, Bergamo/IT
Members
Ana Ezponda, Pamplona/ES
Niki Lama, Athens/GR
Marian Pop, Targu-Mures/RO
Monika Radikė, Liverpool/UK
Grzegorz Staskiewicz, Lublin/PO
Mariia Tregubova, Kyiv/UA
GUIDELINES COMMITTEE
Chairperson
Michelle Williams, Edinburgh/UK
Members
Tommaso D’Angelo, Messina/IT
Marc Dewey, Berlin/DE
Matthias Eberhard, Zurich/CH
Nicola Fink, Munich/DE
Nicola Galea, Rome/IT
Julian Luetkens, Bonn/DE
Alessia Pepe, Padua/IT
EDUCATION & EBCR COMMITTEE
Chairperson
Maja Hrabak-Paar, Zagreb/HR
Members
Xristos Gkizas, Lille/FR
Fabio Greco, Bristol/UK
Alexandros Kallifatidis, Thessaloniki/GR
Sebastian Ley, Munich/DE
Casper Mihl, Maastricht/NL
Sebastian Reinartz, Duesseldorf/DE
Francesco Secchi, Milan/IT
Dominika Suchá, Utrecht/NL
COMMUNICATION & NEW MEDIA COMMITTEE
Chairperson
François Pontana, Lille/FR
Members
João Carvalho, Porto/PT
Domenico De Santis, Rome/IT
Blanca Domenech, Barcelona/ES
Evgenia Efthymiou, Athens/GR
Sonja Jankovic, Nis/RS
Costanza Lisi, Milan/IT
Leyla Musayeva, Baku/AZ
Woosung Seo, Stockholm/SE
Katarzyna Sienkiewicz, Gdansk/PL
Gilles Soulat, Paris/FR
ESCR REPRESENTATIVES AND OTHER COMMITTEES
ESR Subspecialty and Allied Sciences Committee
R. Salgado, Antwerp/BE
ESR Education Committee
D. Suchá, Utrecht/NL
ESR Research Committee
S. Boccalini, Bron/FR
ESR Quality, Safety and Standards Committee
R. Salgado, Antwerp/BE
SOCIETY CONTROLLERS
Term of Office: 2025 – 2026
Mr. Christoph Mayer, Vienna/AT
Mr. Markus Pfingstner, Vienna/AT
Partners
The European Society of Cardiovascular Radiology is happy to announce a closer collaboration with the following companies/societies:
Interested in partnership?
Please contact ESCR Office for more information.
Young Club
ABOUT THE YOUNG CLUB
The ESCR Young Club is a working group of medical or PhD students, residents and young radiologists until the age of 40 (incl. the age of 40) with an interest in cardiovascular radiology.
The aim is to create connections and foster collaborations between young specialists and researchers, by providing an international communication platform to share experiences, exchange ideas and knowledge, and opportunities for social interaction.
THE YOUNG CLUB BOARD (2022-2024)
CHAIRPERSON - Mariia Tregubova, Kyiv/UA
Vitayu! My name is Mariia Tregubova and I’m a radiologist in Amosov National Institute of Cardiovascular Surgery of the Academy of Medical Sciences of Ukraine, located in Kyiv. I am engaged in both clinical and research activity. Cardiac CT in adult and paediatric patients is of particular interest to me.
SECRETARY - Giulia Cundari, Rome/IT
Ciao! I’m Giulia Cundari, an Italian radiology resident at the Department of Radiology of Sapienza University (Rome). I really love
radiology and I’m particularly focused on cardiac MRI and cardiac CT, both with clinical and scientific research activities.
BENEFITS
– Meet young radiologists, experts and make new friends
– Discuss your work and research
– Receive updates on upcoming events
– Help shaping the future of cardiovascular radiology
– Learn more about cardiovascular imaging from the ESCR Webinars
– Attend Young Club initiatives for aspiring cardiovascular radiologists during ESCR Annual Scientific Meetings
VICE CHAIRPERSON - Moritz Halfmann, Mainz/DE
Moin! I’m Moritz Halfmann, a German radiologist in training at the Department for Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology at the University Medical Center in Mainz. My research is focussed on multiparametric cardiac MRI..
BOARD MEMBER - João Carvalho, Porto/PT
Olá! I’m João Carvalho, a last year radiology resident from Centro Hospitalar Universitário de Santo António, in Porto. I’m interested in cardiac MR and CT, both in clinical applications and research. Join us at the Young Club!
YOUNG CLUB BULLETINS
We are proud to present the ESCR Young Club Bulletins.
In case of any suggestions, comments, questions, please do not hesitate to contact the ESCR Office.
Enjoy the reading!
JOIN US
MR/CT Registry
The MR/CT Registry is a database for cardiovascular radiologists to upload their cases and examinations anonymously. At the same time they have the possibility to review cases of other registered persons.
https://www.mrct-registry.org
CT Submissions
MR Submissions
Contributing users
Participating institutes
as per October 31, 2024
The aim of the registry is to document anonymous Cardiac CT- and MR- examinations, which have been performed in Europe, as complete as possible. This seems to be necessary to get a thorough overview of the already existing relevance of these challenging new possibilities in radiology. Further education in the emerging techniques of Cardiac Imaging will be supported.
The registry additionally intends to recruit teachers and identify potential training centers throughout Europe. Furthermore, the MR/CT registry does document and certify personally performed Cardiac CT- and MR-examinations for the application of further qualifying procedures (e.g. European Diploma in Cardiovascular Diploma, etc.). This is necessary on a European as well as on a national level.
STATISTICS
To get an overview of the newest updates, statistics and numbers on the MR/CT Registry download the MR/CT Booklet.
PUBLICATIONS
Clinically Relevant Extracardiac Findings at Cardiac Imaging: Insights from the European MR/CT Registry
Moser LJ, Gutberlet M, Vliegenthart R, Francone M, Budde RPJ, Salgado R, Hrabak Paar M, Pirnat M, Loewe C, Nikolaou K, Williams MC, Muscogiuri G, Natale L, Gohmann RF, Lücke C, Eberhard M, Alkadhi H. Clinically Relevant Extracardiac Findings at Cardiac Imaging: Insights from the European MR/CT Registry. Radiol Cardiothorac Imaging. 2024 Oct;6(5):e240117. doi: 10.1148/ryct.240117. PMID: 39387666; PMCID: PMC11540291.
Conclusion
Data from the multicenter, multinational MR/CT registry indicate that clinically relevant extracardiac findings are present at cardiovascular CT and MRI examinations, and the prevalence of these findings is associated with examination indication and patient age.
Competence of radiologists in cardiac CT and MR imaging in Europe: Insights from the ESCR Registry
Conclusion
Real-life data on cardiac imaging in Europe using the largest available MRCT-registry demonstrate a considerable increase in examinations over the past years, the vast majority of which are read by radiologists. These findings indicate that radiologists contribute to meeting the increasing demands of competent and effective care in cardiac imaging to a relevant extent.
Current Status of Cardiovascular Imaging in Germany: Structured Data from the National Certification Program, ESCR Registry, and Survey among Radiologists
Conclusion
This comprehensive analysis demonstrates that high-quality CVI by radiologists is available nationwide. The current challenges are to provide the best medical and technical quality of CVI by radiology for patient care and to ensure economic sustainability in the German health care system to accommodate the predicted substantial need for CVI in the future.
Quality and safety of coronary computed tomography angiography at academic and non-academic sites:
Insights from a large European registry (ESCR MR/CT Registry)
Conclusion
Non-academic and academic sites provide safe, high-quality CCTA across Europe, essential to successfully implement the recently updated guidelines for the diagnosis and management of chronic coronary syndromes. However, despite examining similar populations with comparable CAD prevalence, non-academic sites tend to refer more patients to downstream testing.
Gadolinium-based Contrast Agents for Cardiac MRI
Uhlig J, Al-Bourini O, Salgado R, Francone M, Vliegenthart R, Bremerich J, Lotz J, Gutberlet M. Gadolinium-based Contrast Agents for Cardiac MRI: Use of Linear and Macrocyclic Agents with Associated Safety Profile from 154 779 European Patients. Radiol Cardiothorac Imaging. 2020 Oct 29;2(5):e200102. doi: 10.1148/ryct.2020200102. PMID: 33778622; PMCID: PMC7977928.
Conclusion
Gadolinium-based contrast agent administration changed according to recent regulatory decisions, with use of macrocyclic agents almost exclusively in 2018 and 2019; these agents also demonstrated a favorable acute safety profile.
Acute Adverse Events in CMR of the MR/CT Registry
We are really proud of that first paper on the Acute Adverse Events in CMR of the ESCR Cardiac MRCT Registry, which nicely demonstrates, that CMR and especially Stress CMR is a safe and reliable method.
Conclusion
GBCA-enhanced CMR imaging demonstrates low AAE rates comparable to those of other body regions. AAE likelihood correlates with GBCA subtype, pharmacological stressor, and imaging indication. Intravenous fluid administration in patients with cardiac impairment might contribute to these findings.
Endorsement
The ESCR board may endorse and support national workshops and congresses if such events fulfill the following rules:
1) ESCR board members will be included in the programme planning committee
2) ESCR board members will be actively involved in the time scheduled and organisation of the event
3) ESCR logo will be included in a local event advertisement after agreement of ESCR board members
4) ESCR will promote the events by his members network, website and during webinars
In counterpart ESCR board members will be invited to such events; all the costs for traveling and local accommodation will be charged to the local organisation committee. ESCR board members will travel in economy class and local expense will not exceed what could be considered as reasonable by both parties. The number of invited ESCR board members will be set in agreement between both parties.
ESCR shall not be charged by the local organisation committee. ESCR will not be responsible for the financial aspect of the events.
The local organisation committee and local attendees of the event should fulfill the rules of the reduced ESCR membership fee as it works through main countries in Europe.
The Scientific Committee Chairperson and Education Chairperson shall decide whether the event will be endorsed. In order to apply for endorsement please send your documents 6 months prior to your event to office@escr.org.