LETTER TO THE EDITORS The Editors invite readers to submit letters commenting on the contents of articles that appear in the JOURNAL. Also welcome are brief communications in letter form reporting investigative or clinical observations without extensive documentation and with brief bibliography (five titles or less), not requiring peer review but open to critique by readers. Letters to the Editors should be no more than 500 words in length and they may have to be edited for publication. The Western Vascular Society: Its first ten years academic level, there should be a warm and convivial social To the Editors: side to the meetings. On October 22, 1984, the "Organizing Committee" of All was not a bed of roses, however. Some members of the future Western Vascular Society met at the invitation of the original group expressed serious doubts about the need Wesley Moore at "Mama's" on Nob Hill in San Francisco, for "another" society that would require more time away Calif. Dr. Moore had invited the current presidents and from home. To some there was a seeming imbalance, with secretaries of the several vascular societies active within the most of the members being from California, especially the area he foresaw as the inclusive geographic extent of the Southern California area, although the numbers roughly new society; the Bay Area Vascular Society (San Fran- parallel the actual population distribution. Some attempts cisco), the Hawaiian Vascular Society, the Portland Vas- were made to redress this possible imbalance by the cular Society, the Puget Sound Vascular Society (Wash- selection of the first 11 presidents from a wide geographic ington), the Rocky Mountain Vascular Society and the dispersal: Sterling Edwards from Albuquerque, N.M.; Southern California Vascular Surgical Society. Only Victor Robert Rutherford from Denver, Colo.; Eugene Strand- Bernhard, Sterling Edwards, Jerry Goldstone, John Porter, ness from Seattle, Wash.; Ronald Stoney from San Robert Rutherford, Eugene Strandness, and the organiz- Francisco, Calif.; Victor Bernhard from Tucson, Ariz.; ing force, Wes Moore, attended the meeting. Wesley Moore of Los Angeles, Calif.; John Porter from The convocation stemmed from a conversation with Portland, Ore.; Eugene Bernstein from La Jolla, Calif.; Dr. Emerick Szilagyi in which Dr. Moore had observed Bob Kistner from Honolulu, Hawaii; and Jerry Goldstone that the still young JOURNAL OF VASCULAR SURGERY from San Francisco, Calif. seemed to have been accepting more articles from several of The first meeting moved northward from San Diego to the other geographically more widely based vascular the Ritz Carlton at Laguna Nigel, but it was a smashing surgical societies-s as the Midwest Vascular Surgical success. The Society approved its proposed bylaws and Society, the New England Society for Vascular Surgery, accepted as members the proposed list of candidates. and the Southern Association for Vascular Surgery-th W. Sterling Edwards was elected as the first president to were being selected from the combined smaller regional preside at the next meeting. Dr. Emerick Szilagyi, one of groups later invited to the meeting at "Mama's." Every the pioneers and deans of American vascular surgery year each of these individual societies offered several attended this meeting as the first of a series of guests to see excellent studies from their programs that justified pub- the Society in action and to judge for himself the lication, but it seemed that amalgamation into one larger prospective merit of the scientific presentations. society might enable that unit to generate a mass of Twenty-one studies were presented at that meeting, excellent studies and discussions that would be more and 10 of these were ultimately published in the JOURNAL suitable for publication. OF VASCULAR SURGERY or elsewhere. The proportion of The immediate outcome of this meeting was a plan to studies being selected by the JOURNAL OF VASCULAR organize and establish the Western Vascular Society. SURGERY has gradually increased over the years and is now Implementation of the plan began with a memorandum comparable to the larger and longer established regional proposing that the first meeting should be held in January societies, thus meeting one of the goals of the Society. 1986, in San Diego, Calif. Dr. Moore charged those at that The social aspects of the meeting also met the first meeting with the development of a list of prospective expectations of the founders. There was active participation founding members. That list comprised nearly 100 suitable in tennis and golf, whale watching, a theme party, and a candidates. formal dinner. The distinguished guest, Dr. Szilagyi, It was planned that the society limit itself to 120 regular provided his usual wise comments but later emerged from active members to allow for more intimate discussion and his stern and scientific pose to join with vigor at the the interplay more likely to be obtained in a smaller group. Western roundup theme party; his activities were recorded Subsequently several members have been chosen as "Ad- on film by many of the guests. Over the years that the junct Members" whose qualifications in either radiology or historian has sought snapshots to illuminate the history of the diagnostic vascular laboratory made them particularly the Society, it appears that Dr. Szilagyi was unquestionably suitable participants in the programs. It was also expected the highlight of the evening, dancing up a storm with many that, although the meetings would be at the highest of the ladies present. 505 JOURNAL OF VASCULAR SURGERY 506 Letter to the Editors October 1995 Successive meetings in Tucson, Ariz.; Monterey, Calif.; technique and the results of surgical therapy. If any one Poipu Beach, Hawaii; Coronado, Calif.; Rancho Mirage, theme portrays the history of the scientific sessions, it was Calif.; Maui, Hawaii; Sonoma, Calif.; and Santa Barbara, the early presentation of many of the studies on endolu- Calif. At the Coronado meeting President Ron Stoney