Society of Interventional Radiology Names James Benenati as Dotter Lecturer

SAN DIEGO, March 22, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Society of Interventional Radiology Past President James F. Benenati, M.D., FSIR, a practicing interventional radiologist, clinical researcher and medical director at Baptist Cardiac & Vascular Institute's (BCVI) Peripheral Vascular Laboratory in Miami since 1990, will deliver the 2014 Dr. Charles T. Dotter Lecture at the March 23 opening plenary of SIR's 39th Annual Scientific Meeting. SIR 2014 is being held March 22–27 in San Diego.

Supported by SIR Foundation, the lecture recognizes an interventional radiologist's extraordinary contributions to the field, dedicated service to SIR and distinguished career achievements. Benenati's topic for the 30th annual Dotter lecture will be "Thirty Miles East of Samar," an exploration of SIR choices in training, innovation, working collaboratively with other medical specialties and political issues affecting medicine. Benenati, who is also BCVI's fellowship program director of interventional radiology, was selected by SIR President Scott C. Goodwin, M.D., FSIR, to deliver the Dotter lecture, an annual invited lecture to honor one of the founding fathers of interventional radiology.

"The Society of Interventional Radiology recognizes Dr. Benenati's exemplary achievements over the years and his unwavering dedication to interventional radiology and the society. Much loved by his patients and respected by colleagues, he continues to drive medical research to improve patient care and expertly train the next generation of interventional radiology doctors," said Goodwin, who represents the society of nearly 5,000 doctors, scientists and allied health professionals dedicated to improving health care through image-guided, minimally invasive treatments. "This talented, brilliant interventionalist leads by excellence and example—developing and growing a vibrant practice over the years—stressing collaboration among medical professionals to ensure high-quality care for patients, the hospital and the community," added Goodwin, an interventional radiologist and the Hasso Brothers' Professor and chair of radiological services at the University of California Irvine (UCI) School of Medicine.

"I am deeply honored and humbled to be included among past Dotter lecturers—interventional radiology pioneers who solved difficult medical problems with creativity, innovation and research," said Benenati, who is credited with developing one of the country's most coveted and sought-after fellowships and best-known for his work to establish a nationally renowned accredited peripheral vascular laboratory. 

Benenati—who also serves as clinical professor of radiology at Florida International University's Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine, Miami, and a clinical associate professor of radiology at the University of South Florida Morsani College of Medicine, Tampa—has participated in research focused on abdominal aortic aneurysm repair with endografts, stents in peripheral vascular disease, prevention of restenosis in the femoral and popliteal arteries, carotid stenting, hypertension management and fibroid embolization.

A member of the Society's Executive Council for more than a decade and a past chair of its Annual Scientific Meeting Committee, Benenati is an active board member of the Intersocietal Accreditation Commission (IAC) and he is past president of the Intersocietal Commission for the Accreditation of Vascular Laboratories (ICAVL), a national commission that sets standards for noninvasive vascular testing throughout the United States. He is a Fellow of SIR and the American Heart Association.

Benenati is also program director for ISET (International Symposium on Endovascular Therapy) and is active in educational activities for SIR. He is a Notre Dame alum and received his medical degree from the University of South Florida Morsani College of Medicine. He completed a residency in diagnostic radiology at Indiana University Medical Center, Indianapolis, and a fellowship in cardiovascular and interventional radiology at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore.

More information about the Society of Interventional Radiology, finding an interventional radiologist in your area and minimally invasive treatments can be found online at www.SIRweb.org.

About the Society of Interventional Radiology Foundation
SIR Foundation is a scientific foundation dedicated to fostering research and education in interventional radiology for the purposes of advancing scientific knowledge, increasing the number of skilled investigators in interventional radiology and developing innovative therapies that lead to improved patient care and quality of life. Visit www.SIRFoundation.org.

About the Society of Interventional Radiology 
Interventional radiologists are physicians who specialize in minimally invasive, targeted treatments. They offer the most in-depth knowledge of the least invasive treatments available coupled with diagnostic and clinical experience across all specialties. Using X-ray, MRI and other imaging to advance a catheter in the body, such as in an artery, they treat disease at the source internally. As the inventors of angioplasty and the catheter-delivered stent, which were first used in the legs to treat peripheral arterial disease, interventional radiologists pioneered minimally invasive modern medicine. Many conditions that once required surgery can be treated less invasively by interventional radiologists. Interventional radiology treatments offer less risk, less pain and less recovery time compared to open surgery. Visit www.SIRweb.org. Follow SIR on Facebook and Twitter and use #SIR2014 to keep up with news from SIR 2014, which is being held March 22–27 in San Diego.

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SOURCE Society of Interventional Radiology