American Association of Neurological Surgeons

Scientific and educational association

American Association of Neurological Surgeons

Abbreviation	AANS
Formation	1931
Type	Professional association
Headquarters	Rolling Meadows, Illinois
Region served	Worldwide
Membership	12,000
CEO	Katie O. Orrico
Website	www.aans.org

The American Association of Neurological Surgeons (AANS) is a professional organization focused on advancing the specialty of neurological surgery. Founded in 1931, the AANS serves a membership of over 12,000 professionals worldwide, including neurosurgeons, medical students and allied health professionals. It is one of the five Continental Associations of the World Federation of Neurosurgical Societies (WFNS), the other four being the AASNS, CAANS, EANS and FLANC.

History

Attendees at the first meeting of the Harvey Cushing Society in Boston, 1932.

Founded in 1931, the AANS was originally known as the Harvey Cushing Society, named for the brain surgery pioneer Harvey Cushing. The creation of the society was spurred initially by R. Glen Spurling and William P. Van Wagenen who, with Cushing, acknowledged the need for a venue in which younger neurosurgeons could exchange ideas on the specialty. Membership to the Society of Neurological Surgeons, the specialty's key organization during this period, was closed to younger men at this time. Spurling and Van Wagenen enlisted the help of Temple Fay and R. Eustace Semmes in the creation of the group, and on May 6, 1932, the Harvey Cushing Society held its first meeting in Boston. Twenty-three people attended, many of whom were Cushing's colleagues and neurosurgical trainees.

Other charter members of the society were Gilbert Anderson, Paul C. Bucy, W. Edward Chamberlain, Leo M. Davidoff, Louise Eisenhardt, Edgar Fincher, John F. Fulton, W. James Gardner, William J. German, Franc D. Ingraham, Franklin Jelsma, Edgar Kahn, Roland Klemme, James G. Lyerly Sr., Eric Oldberg, Tracy Putnam, Frederic Schreiber, Merril C. Sosman, and Frank R. Teachenor.

The association was later renamed what it remains today: “The American Association of Neurological Surgeons,” to reflect its broader membership and mission.

Significant dates

1942 – The AANS adopts new bylaws requiring active members to be certified by the American Board of Neurological Surgery (ABNS).
1944 – The first issue of the Journal of Neurosurgery is printed. An editorial board had been established in 1943, and Louise Eisenhardt was named editor-in-chief.
1967 – At its annual meeting in San Francisco, the Harvey Cushing Society changes its name to the American Association of Neurological Surgeons (AANS). The group also revamps its membership requirements, now noting that only board-certified neurosurgeons could be considered for active membership. Associate memberships are available for those in related neurological disciplines. This same year, the William P. Van Wagenen Fellowship is established to provide educational funding to medical students.
1969 – The association observes the 100-year anniversary of Harvey Cushing's birth by holding its annual meeting in his birthplace of Cleveland and issuing a commemorative stamp via the United States Postal Service.
1976 – A headquarters office is established in downtown Chicago. The office moves to Park Ridge, Illinois in 1984, and subsequently to its current location in Rolling Meadows, Illinois in 2000.
1988 – The United States Postal Service issues an official Harvey Cushing stamp on June 17 as part of its "Great Americans" 45-cent stamp collection.

Membership

The AANS is composed of board-certified neurosurgeons from around the world as well as medical students, neurosurgical support staff, and physicians in associated fields of practice.

Legislative advocacy

Throughout its history, the AANS has taken stances on legislative issues affecting neurosurgical professionals and their patients. Efforts include patient safety and quality improvement, tort reform, and issues relating to the Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act. In addition to a professional staff office in Washington, D.C., the AANS maintains a member-driven Washington Committee to advocate for a number of causes. Washington staff maintains the Neurosurgery Blog which highlights the latest legislative activities affecting health care and the neurosurgical specialty.

Publications

Since 1944, the AANS has published the Journal of Neurosurgery. In addition, the quarterly AANS Neurosurgeon focuses on "issues related to legislation, workforce and practice management." Each issue is centered on different themes, and past themes include humanitarian neurosurgery, neurosurgeons as patients, stereotactic radiosurgery, and neurovascular neurosurgery.

Patient information and public outreach

The AANS offers resources on its website to education patients about neurosurgical conditions and treatments. Every August, the AANS organizes Neurosurgery Awareness Month, this initiative aims to promote neurological safety and increase public understanding of critical neurosurgical conditions, including stroke prevention and treatment.

Education

The AANS offers its members a number of educational opportunities, mostly through courses held around the country at various times of the year. Topics include practice management, oral board preparation, maintenance of certification, and resident education. Course offerings also extend to mid-level practitioners such as nurses and physician assistants.

Annual meeting

The AANS has held an Annual Scientific Meeting every year since its 1932 inception except twice; in 1945 due to World War II, and in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The 2021 meeting was exclusively virtual, also due to the pandemic.

Programming includes presentations of neurological studies, seminars, workshops for practitioners at all levels, and keynote speeches. Past speakers include H. Ross Perot (1987), Colin Powell (1995), George H. W. Bush (1999), Tom Brokaw (2001), Benazir Bhutto (2002), Henry Kissinger (2003), Ken Burns (2004), Walter Isaacson (2013), and Chesley Sullenberger (2013).

Neurosurgical Research and Education Foundation

Established by the AANS in 1981, the Neurosurgery Research and Education Foundation provides funding for training in the neurosciences and support for career neurosurgeons. Through grants and awards, it supports medical students, residents and young neurosurgical faculty in conducting basic science, patient-oriented, clinical and outcomes research, as well as outcomes studies that protect and support neurosurgical procedures for all practicing neurosurgeons. It also funds North American and international fellowships in all neurosurgical subspecialties.

Neuropoint Alliance

As an effort led by the AANS with cooperation of other organized neurological associations, the Neuropoint Alliance was founded in 2008 to collect, analyze, and report clinical data from neurosurgical practices. Services include clinical trial management, study design, and survey facilitation. Its first nationwide effort was the National Neurosurgery Quality and Outcomes Database.

AANS Award Winners

The AANS presents several major awards each year during the AANS Annual Scientific Meeting, honoring the lifetime contribution of members for their surgical, scientific and humanitarian accomplishments.

Cushing Medal

2024 Christopher I. Shaffrey, MD, FAANS
2023 Regis W. Haid, Jr., MD, FAANS
2022 William T. Couldwell, MD, PhD, FAANS
2021 Robert E. Harbaugh, MD, FAANS
2020 H. Hunt Batjer, MD, FAANS(L)
2019 James T. Rutka, MD, PhD, FAANS
2018 James R. Bean, MD, FAANS
2017 Robert F. Spetzler, MD, FAANS
2016 Ralph G. Dacey Jr., MD, FAANS
2015 Arthur L. Day, MD, FAANS
2014 Troy M. Tippett, MD, FAANS(L)
2013 Jon H. Robertson, MD, FAANS
2012 Donald O. Quest, MD, FAANS(L)
2011 A. John Popp, MD, FAANS
2010 Roberto C. Heros, MD, FAANS
2009 Edward H. Oldfield, MD, FAANS
2008 Charles B. Wilson, MD, FAANS
2007 Robert G. Grossman, MD, FAANS
2006 David G. Kline, MD, FAANS
2005 Martin H. Weiss, MD, FAANS
2004 John A. Jane Sr., MD, PhD, FAANS
2003 Stewart B. Dunkser, MD, FAANS
2002 Edward R. Laws Jr., MD, FAANS
2001 Julian T. Hoff, MD
2000 Russell H. Patterson Jr., MD
1999 David J. Kelly Jr., MD, FAANS
1998 Albert L. Rhoton Jr., MD, FAANS
1997 Robert G. Ojemann, MD
1996 Shelley N. Chou, MD, PhD
1995 Richard DeSaussure, MD
1994 Byron C. Pevehouse, MD
1993 Sidney Goldring, MD
1992 W. Eugene Stern, MD
1991 William F. Collins, MD
1990 Robert B. King, MD
1989 Lester A. Mount, MD
1988 Charles G. Drake, MD
1987 William F. Meacham, MD
1986 Lyle French, MD
1985 Francis Murphey, MD
1984 Eben Alexander Jr., MD
1983 Guy L. Odom, MD
1982 W. James Gardner, MD
1981 Bronson S. Ray, MD
1980 Paul C. Bucy, MD
1979 Henry G. Schwartz, MD
1978 William H. Sweet, MD
1977 Frank H. Mayfield, MD

AANS Distinguished Service Award

2024 H. Hunt Batjer, MD, FAANS(L)
2023 Edward Laws, MD, FAANS(L)
2022 James T. Rutka, MD, PhD, FAANS
2021 Jon H. Robertson, MD, FAANS
2020 Joseph S. Cheng, MD, MS, FAANS
2019 M. Ross Bullock, MD, PhD
2018 Robert E. Harbaugh, MD, FAANS, FACS
2017 Volker K.H. Sonntag, MD, FAANS(L)
2016 Blas Ezequiel Lopez Felix, MD, FAANS
2015 Kim J. Burchiel, MD, FAANS
2014 Sir Graham Teasdale, FRCP
2013 Ralph G. Dacey Jr., MD, FAANS
2012 James R. Bean, MD, FAANS
2011 Thomas A. Marshall
2010 Katie O. Orrico
2009 In Memory of Samuel J. Hassenbush, MD, PhD
2008 Peter W. Carmel, MD, FAANS
2007 Mary Louise Sanderson
2006 John C. Van Gilder, MD
2005 John A. Kusske, MD, FAANS
2004 Troy M. Tippett, MD, FAANS
2003 John A. Jane Sr., MD, PhD, FAANS
2002 Donald H. Stewart Jr., MD, FAANS
2001 Frank P. Smith, MD
2000 George Ablin, MD
2000 Robert H. Wilkins, MD, FAANS
1999 W. Ben Blackett, MD, JD, FAANS
1998 Mark J. Kubala, MD, FAANS
1997 Ernest W. Mack, MD
1996 Robert E. Florin, MD, FAANS
1995 Charles Edwin Bracket, MD, FAANS
1994 William A. Buchheit, MD, FAANS
1993 Roy W. Black, Codman & Shurtlett, Vice President

AANS Humanitarian Award

2024 Jeffrey P. Blount, MD, FAANS
2023 Alexa Canady, MD, FAANS(L)
2022 Rodger Hartl, MD, FAANS
2021 Gail L. Rosseau, MD, FAANS
2020 Laverne Ray Lovell, MD, FAANS
2019 David I. Sandberg, MD, FAANS
2018 Jack P. Rock, MD, FAANS
2017 John Ragheb, MD, FAANS
2016 Karin M. Muraszko, MD, FAANS
2015 Michael M. Haglund, MD, PhD, FAANS
2014 Anselmo Pineda, MD, FAANS(L)
2013 Mark Bernstein, MD, FAANS
2012 A. Leland Albright, MD, FAANS(L)
2011 Barth A. Green, MD
2010 Timr Banerjee, MD, FAANS
2009 Armonando J. Basso, MD, PhD
2008 Robert J. Dempsey, MD, FAANS
2007 Benjamin C. Warf, MD, FAANS
2006 Gene E. Bolles, MD, FAANS
2005 Tetsuo Tatsumi, MD, FAANS
2004 Charles L. Branch Sr., MD,FAANS
2002 Edgar M. Housepian, MD, FAANS
2001 Gary D. Vander Ark, MD, FAANS
2000 Merwyn Bagan, MD, MPH, FAANS
1999 Thomas B. Flynn, MD, FAANS
1998 Lee Finney, MD,
1997 Robert J. White, MD
1995 Melvin L. Cheatham, MD, FAANS
1994 E. Fletcher Eyster, MD, FAANS
1993 Manuel Velasco-Suarez, MD
1992 William H. Mosberg Jr., MD
1991 George B. Udvarhelyi, MD
1990 A. Roy Tyrer Jr., MD
1989 Hugo V. Rizzoli, MD
1988 Gaston Acosta-Rua, MD
1987 Courtland H. Davis Jr., MD, FAANS

AANS Cushing Award for Technical Excellence and Innovation in Neurosurgery

2024 Mitchel S. Berger, MD, FAANS
2023 Michael Lawton, MD, FAANS
2022 Christopher I. Shaffrey, MD, FAANS
2021 Robert F. Spetzler, MD, FAANS(L)
2020 Allan H. Friedman, MD, FAANS
2019 Kevin T. Foley, MD, FAANS
2018 John R. Adler, Jr., MD, FAANS
2017 Fady T. Charbel, MD, FAANS
2016 L. Dade Lunsford, MD, FAANS
2015 Ossama Al-Mefty, MD, FAANS
2014 Robert H. Rosenwasser, MD, FAANS
2013 Edward H. Oldfield, MD, FAANS

AANS International Lifetime Recognition Award

2023 Marinus H. Koning, MD, FACS
2022 Asdrubal Falavigna, MD, PhD, IFAANS
2021 Yoko Kato, MD, IFAANS (Japan)
2020 Basant Misra, MCh, MS
2019 Franco Servadei, MD, Italy
2018 Jeffrey V. Rosenfeld, MD, MS, IFAANS, FACS
2017 André Grotenhuis, MD, PhD, IFAANS, from Nijmegen, Netherlands
2016 Edgardo Spagnuolo, MD, from Montevideo Uruguay
2015 Andrew H. Kaye, MD, IFAANS, from Melbourne, Australia
2014 Nicolas de Tribolet, MD, from Geneva, Switzerland
2013 Johannes Schramm, MD, from Bonn, Germany
2012 Leonidas M. Quintana, MD, IFAANS, from Vina del Mar, Chile
2011 Shigeaki Kobayashi, MD, PhD, from Matsumoto, Japan
2010 Shigeaki Kobayashi, MD, PhD, from Matsumoto, Japan
2009 Albino Bricolo, MD, from Verona, Italy
2008 Jose Humberto Mateos Gomez, MD, FAANS(L), from Madrid, Mexico

References

"AANS Leadership and Governance". aans.org. Retrieved 6 December 2024.
"About the Foundation | World Federation of Neurosurgical Societies".
^ Mathews, Marlon S.; Linskey, Mark E.; Binder, Devin K. (2008-02-29). "William P. van Wagenen and the first corpus callosotomies for epilepsy". Journal of Neurosurgery. 108 (3): 608–613. doi:10.3171/JNS/2008/108/3/0608. ISSN 0022-3085. PMID 18312112.
"1988 45c Harvey Cushing, M.D. – Catalog # 2188 For Sale at Mystic Stamp Company". Mysticstamp.com. 1988-06-17. Retrieved 2014-05-31.
"AANS Neurosurgeon – About". Aansneurosurgeon.org. Archived from the original on 2014-05-31. Retrieved 2014-05-31.
"2009 AANS Annual Meeting – Housing". Aans.org. Archived from the original on 2013-09-14. Retrieved 2014-05-31.
"Medical Student Summer Research Fellowships". Neurosurgery Research & Education Foundation. NREF. Retrieved 2024-01-21.
"Research Fellowship Grants & Young Clinician Investigator Awards". Neurosurgery Research & Education Foundation. NREF. Retrieved 2024-01-21.
"NPA N²QOD". Neuropoint.org. Retrieved 2014-05-31.
"NPA Home". Neuropoint.org. Archived from the original on 2014-06-30. Retrieved 2014-05-31.
"Spine Patient Data Gathering of the Future: Q&A With Drs. Anthony Asher and Matthew McGirt of N2QOD". Beckersspine.com. 2013-02-04. Retrieved 2014-05-31.
"AANS Award Winners".

External links

Official website

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