The Accreditation & Certification Sub-Committee supports the Office based staff by developing a comprehensive accreditation and certification tools for our education portfolio. It supports the effectiveness of ISUOG’s curricula by setting standards for learning objectives and developing assessment through a formal accreditation / certification program.
Chair
Education Committee
Prof. Nikos Vrachnis is an Associate Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the University of Athens Medical School, Attiko University Hospital in Athens, and Chair of the ISUOG Validation Task Force. Currently, he serves as President of the Hellenic Authority for Medically Assisted Reproduction. He is also a Visiting Reader in Obstetrics and Fetal Medicine at St George’s University Hospital, NHS Foundation Trust, London.
Nikos has written or edited 15 books, has more than 150 scientific publications and has been awarded four times for his research work. He has a special interest in medical education, simulation and training, preterm labour, Down’s syndrome, fetal anomalies and 3D/4D ultrasound. Has run more than 100 practical courses in Greece and Cyprus, including Obstetric and Gynecologic Ultrasound courses, as well as courses in Advanced Life Support in Obstetrics and Gynecology. Presently serves as President of the Hellenic Society of Obstetric and Gynecologic Emergency.
Within the ISUOG he is a member of the Educational Committee, of the Basic Training Task Force and of the Patient Leaflets task force.
Notable publications
Soluble Fas and Fas-ligand levels in mid-trimester amniotic fluid and their associations with severe small for gestational age fetuses: a prospective observational study.
Vrachnis N, Dalainas I, Papoutsis D, Samoli E, Rizos D, Iliodromiti Z, Siristatidis C, Tsikouras P, Creatsas G, Botsis D. J Reprod Immunol. 2013 Jun;98(1-2):39-44
The fetus that is small for gestational age.
Vrachnis N, Botsis D, Iliodromiti Z. Ann N Y Acad Sci. 2006 Dec;1092:304-9
Elevated mid-trimester amniotic fluid ADAM-8 concentrations as a potential risk factor for preterm delivery.
Vrachnis N, Malamitsi-Puchner A, Samoli E, Botsis D, Iliodromiti Z, Baka S, Hassiakos D, Creatsas G. J Soc Gynecol Investig. 2006 Apr;13(3):186-90.
Resistin in mid-trimester amniotic fluid in trisomy 21.
Vrachnis N, Gkogkas L, Iliodromiti S, Grigoriadis C, Samoli E, Iliodromiti Z, Pangalos C, Pappa KI, Drakoulis N, Creatsas G, Botsis D. J Matern Fetal Neonatal Med. 2013 Nov;26(16):1576-80
Three-dimensional ultrasound and three-dimensional power Doppler improve the preoperative evaluation of complex benign ovarian lesions.
Vrachnis N, Sifakis S, Samoli E, Kappou D, Pavlakis K, Iliodromiti Z, Botsis D. Clin Exp Obstet Gynecol. 2012;39(4):474-8.
Hospital visiting in obstetrics and gynecology: a tool for the advancement of training.
Creatsas G, Vrachnis N. Int J Gynaecol Obstet. 2006 Dec;95(3):298-301
Placental growth factor (PlGF): a key to optimizing fetal growth.
Vrachnis N, Kalampokas E, Sifakis S, Vitoratos N, Kalampokas T, Botsis D, Iliodromiti Z. J Matern Fetal Neonatal Med. 2013 Jul;26(10):995-1002.
Doppler assessment of the intrauterine growth-restricted fetus.
Botsis D, Vrachnis N, Christodoulakos G. Ann N Y Acad Sci. 2006 Dec;1092:297-303
Country: Greece
Field: Obstetrics, Gynecology, Fetal-Maternal Medicine
Specialties: Preterm labour, Down’s syndrome, fetal anomalies, and 3D/4D ultrasound
Languages: Greek, English
Sub-Committee Members
Accreditation & Certification Sub-Committee, VISUOG Case of the Month Lead, UOG Editorial Board
Prof. dr. C.M. (Katia) Bilardo is Professor of Fetal Medicine at UMCG in the Netherlands and is an expert on ultrasound and invasive prenatal diagnosis.
Caterina (Katia) M. Bilardo was born in Savigliano (Piedmont), Italy. After completing
cum laude in 1983 the Medical studies and the Specialization in Obstetrics and
Gynaecology at the University of Turin, she trained as Fellow in Prenatal Diagnosis and
Fetal Medicine (1985- 1989) at King’s College Hospital, London, where she worked
under the supervision of Prof. S. Campbell and Prof. K. N. Nicolaides.
Since 1989 she has relocated to the Netherlands where she has worked as Consultant
and Head of the Prenatal Diagnosis Department at the Academic Medical Center
Amsterdam (1992-2010). From 2010 to 2017 she has worked as Head of the Fetal
Medicine Department at the University Medical Center Groningen where, in 2011, she
has been appointed Professor in Fetal Medicine. Since October 2017 she has moved
with the same position to the Amsterdam UMC, location VU Medical Center in
Amsterdam, where she has also been appointed as Professor in Obstetrics, Gynecology
and Fetal Medicine. In the Netherlands she has been President of the Dutch Working
Party for Ultrasound in Obstetrics and Gynecology and is currently member of the
Committee Prenatal Screening of the National Health Council.
Since 2007 she is in the Editorial Board of Ultrasound in Obstetrics and Gynecology.
Since 2009 she is Board member of the International Society of Ultrasound in Obstetrics
and Gynecology (ISUOG). Between 2013-2017 she was Chair of the Education
Committee within ISUOG. And in 2018-2020 she has been President of the same
Society.
She has published over 200 peer-reviewed articles and supervised numerous PhD students.
In 2021 she was bestowed the Stuart Campbell award for Education.
Research Areas
• Doppler study of the utero-placental and fetal circulation (chief researcher
Truffle study)
• Fetal dysmorphology ( 2D and 3D studies)
• First and second trimester ultrasound screening for aneuploidies
• First trimester ultrasound
• Psychological aspects of Screening
• Fetal cardiology
Field: Obstetrics
Country: The Netherlands
Specialties: Fetal anomaly screening T1 & T2; fetal biometry and wellbeing; aneuploidies; fetal anomalies; fetal heart; fetal brain; fetal growth restriction; maternal and fetal Doppler; fetal interventional procedures; 3D & 4D ultrasound; genetics
Languages: English; Italian; French; Dutch
Specialist in fetal medicine and surgery, American University of Beirut Medical Center, Lebanon
Co-Founder of CéBB (Centre d’échographie Boulogne-Billancourt) and Centre SFFERe (Spécialiste Fœtus, Femme Enceinte et Reproduction). Part timer in the Fetal surgery center, Necker-Enfants Malades Hospital, Paris, France.
Dr Gihad E. Chalouhi MD, PhD is an Obstetrics and Gynecology specialist. He worked for 8 years with Prof. Yves Ville Y and Prof. Laurent Salomon in Necker-Enfants Malades Hospital, Paris and is subspecialized in in prenatal diagnosis, fetal medicine, fetoscopy and fetal surgery with more than 300 performed fetoscopies. He is specialized in fetal imaging and obtained his PhD in fetal functional MRI in Paris Descartes University and INSERM unit U970. He is a member of the CNGOF (French National College of obstetrics and Gynecology), the LSOG (Lebanese Society of Obstetrics and Gynecology) and the CFEF (French College of Fetal Ultrasound).
He is a pioneer in the implementation of simulation in obstetrical and gynecological ultrasound education, and remains actively involved in this integration. He is an active member of ISUOG's Basic Training Task Force, and leader of the Simulation Work Group. For the last five years he has worked as part of ISUOG's Clinical Standards Committee for the establishment of ISUOG’s Guidelines.
He is the co-founder and President of SimECHOle, the school for ultrasound training and education using simulators in Paris, France.
Notable Publications: Dr Chalouhi has co-authored more than 70 scientific publications in internationally renowned journals and more then 10 chapters.
Use of simulators for the assessment of trainees' competence: trendy toys or valuable instruments?
Tolsgaard MG, Chalouhi GE. Ultrasound Obstet Gynecol. 2018 Apr 17. doi: 10.1002/uog.19071. [Epub ahead of print] PubMed PMID: 29667240.
"Fake it until they make it": Practical obstetrical and gynecological ultrasound education nowadays in France.
Chalouhi GE, Gueneuc A, Levaillant JM, Ville Y. Gynecol Obstet Fertil Senol. 2017 Nov;45(11):579-581. doi: 10.1016/j.gofs.2017.09.008. Epub 2017 Nov 3. French. PubMed PMID: 29108903.
Evaluation of trainees' ability to perform obstetrical ultrasound using simulation: challenges and opportunities.
Chalouhi GE, Bernardi V, Gueneuc A, Houssin I, Stirnemann JJ, Ville Y. Am J Obstet Gynecol. 2016 Apr;214(4):525.e1-525.e8. doi: 10.1016/j.ajog.2015.10.932. Epub 2015 Nov 10. PubMed PMID: 26546849.
Ultrasound simulators in obstetrics and gynecology: state of the art.
Chalouhi GE, Bernardi V, Ville Y. Ultrasound Obstet Gynecol. 2015 Sep;46(3):255-63. doi: 10.1002/uog.14707. PubMed PMID: 25346451.
Country: Lebanon and France
Field: Obstetrics/Gynecology/Fetal medicine and surgery
Specialties: Fetal anomaly screening 1st trimester and 2nd trimester; fetal biometry and wellbeing; fetal anomalies screening; aneuploidy screening; fetal anomalies; fetal heart; fetal growth restriction; maternal and fetal Doppler; fetal interventional procedure; multiple pregnancy; early pregnancy; fetal growth; education in Ob-Gyn ultrasound; fetal MRI and functional MRI; fetal surgery.
Languages: French; English; Arabic
Country: China
Field: Obstetrics
Specialties: Fetal anomaly screening T1 & T2; aneuploidies; fetal anomalies
Languages: English; Chinese (Mandarin)
Dr Daniele Di Mascio is currently Research Fellow (RTD-B) and consultant at the Department of Maternal and Child Health and Urological Sciences, Sapienza University of Rome, Italy. His clinical and research interests are focused on Maternal-Fetal Medicine and particularly on fetal brain, fetal growth restriction and twin pregnancies. In 2019 he worked as a Research Fellow at the Division of Maternal Fetal Medicine of the Jefferson University Hospital in Philadelphia (USA) supervised by Dr Vincenzo Berghella. During the ISUOG World Congress 2019, he received the Young Investigator Award - Obstetrics for a multicenter study on the role of prenatal MRI in fetuses with isolated ventriculomegaly at neurosonography and in ISUOG World Congress 2022 he gave the Stuart Campbell Lecture on COVID-19 and pregnancy outcomes. He is currently member of the ISUOG Next Generation Committee and Accreditation & Certification Sub-Committee.
Country: Italy
Field: Obstetrics; Maternal-Fetal Medicine; Prenatal Imaging
Specialties: fetal brain; fetal growth restriction; multiple pregnancy
Languages: English; Spanish; Italian
Prof. Mohamed Kamal Etman trained in obstetrics and gynecology at Ain Shams University, and subspecialized in fetal medicine. At present, Prof Kamal is consultant in fetal medicine and high risk obstetric care. Currently, he is an Associate Professor of Obstetrics & Gynecology and Fetal Medicine at Faculty of Medicine, Fayoum University. Previously he was a consultant In Maternal Fetal Medicine Unit at Ain Shams University Hospital, where he is committed to the implementation of clinical guidelines in the unit's practice. He is also a Founder and Chair of of Egyptian Fetal Medicine Foundation. Prof Kamal obtained his medical degree and underwent his residency training at Ain Shams University. He is a visiting Fellow in Obstetrics and Gynecology Ultrasound and Fetal Echo in Radiology Department at Sidney Kimmel Hospital, Thomas Jefferson University, PA, USA. He has run the ISUOG endorsed Fetal Medicine and OBGYN Ultrasound workshops since 2017 and trained hundreds of healthcare practitioners in Egypt and MENA region. Through his ISUOG membership, he has delivered several ISUOG approved courses attracting hundreds of doctors in MENA region to be ISUOG members. He has been an organiser and Chair of ISUOG's 16th International Symposium in Cairo, Egypt.
Notable Publications:
Endometrial Evaluation by Transvaginal Ultrasonography Saline Infusion Sonohysterography, Hysteroscopy versus Endometrial Office Biopsy in Perimenopausal Bleeding: A Comparative Study. Mohamed Kamal, Almandouh H. Bosilah, OJOG. Vol.10 No. 8. August 24, 2020.
Five-dimensional long bones biometry for estimation of femur length and fetal weight at term compared to two-dimensional ultrasound: a pilot study. Laban M, Alanwar AA, Etman MK, Elsokkary MS, Elkotb AM, Hasanien AS, Khalaf Allah AE, Noah NMJ, Matern Fetal Neonatal Med. 2017 Jul 27:1-7
Endometrial Volume Measured by VOCAL Compared to Office Hysteroscopy for Diagnosis of Endometrial Polyps in Premenopausal Women with Abnormal Uterine Bleeding. Mohamed Laban, Sherif H. Hussain, Alaa S. Hassanin, Waleed M. Khalaf, Mohamed K. Etman, Mohammed S. E. Elsafty, Ahmed M. Bahaa Eldin, Ahmad S. Hasanien, Noha A. Sakna, Mohammed Taema, Mohammed H. Mostafa, and Marwa M. Eisa, Obstetrics and Gynecology International, Volume 2016 (2016), Article ID 3561324
Country: Egypt
Field: Obstetrics, Gynecology, Fetal Medicine
Specialties: Fetal anomaly screening first and second trimester, fetal biometry and wellbeing, fetal anomalies screening, aneuploidy screening, fetal anomalies, fetal heart, fetal growth restriction, maternal and fetal doppler, multiple pregnancy, 3D/4D ultrasound, gynecological ultrasound, early pregnancy, preterm delivery; fetal growth; detection of fetal and neonatal growth abnormalities
Languages: Arabic, English
UOG Editorial Board, China Task Force
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Member of the UOG Editorial Board
Honours Committee Member
Prof. Angela Ranzini is a Maternal Fetal Medicine Specialist in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at The MetroHealth System in Cleveland, Ohio, USA and full professor of Reproductive Biology at Case Western Reserve University. Her special interests include anomaly identification, prediction of prematurity, Twins, Teaching processes and Quality control. Angela completed her MD at Medical College of Virginia (VCU), her Ob/Gyn residency at The Mount Sinai Hospital in New York, NY and her Fellowship in Maternal Fetal Medicine at Jefferson University, Philadelphia, PA.
Angela is the Director of the Fetal Diagnostic Center at the MetroHealth System and the Program Director for the Maternal Fetal Medicine Fellowship at the MetroHealth/Case Western Reserve University joint fellowship with University Hospitals. She is a Fellow member of AIUM and is a reviewer for Ultrasound in Obstetrics and Gynecology and Journal of Ultrasound in Medicine. She is currently the Chair of the Education Committee, the Project Lead for the Rwanda Outreach program and serves as the VISUOG Abdomen section editor. She has been involved in many Committees and Task Forces of ISUOG.
Country: USA
Field: Obstetrics; Imaging; Fetal Medicine
Specialties: Fetal anomaly screening; fetal biometry and wellbeing; aneuploidies; fetal anomalies; fetal growth restriction; maternal and fetal Doppler; multiple pregnancy
Languages: English
Secretariat Liaison
