Cleveland Clinic physician to head stroke conference

Caldwell B. Esselstyn, Jr., M.D., director of the Wellness Institute at the famed Cleveland Clinic will keynote the first annual Siruno Stroke Prevention Conference on  Friday, June 11, from noon – 5 p.m. at the Caribou Inn and Convention Center.     The conference, which is open to all health professionals, is being presented in honor of the late Cesar Siruno, M.D., a longtime general surgeon at Cary Medical Center. Dr. Siruno suffered a major stroke in 2008 and subsequently was diagnosed with cancer and died Jan. 1, 2009.  The Siruno family established the Siruno Stroke Education Center in his memory to educate professionals and the general public on stroke prevention.
Dr. Esselstyn has served as president of the medical staff at the Cleveland Clinic, one of the largest private medical establishments in the world. He attended Yale University, earned his medical degree at the Western Reserve University, completing his surgical residency at the Cleveland Clinic in Ohio and at the St. George Hospital in London.
Esselstyn also was awarded a Bronze Star as a battlefield surgeon in Vietnam and won an Olympic gold medal at the 1956 Summer Games, as a member of the U.S. rowing team. In April, 2005, he became the first recipient of the Benjamin Spock Compassion in Medicine Award and has been named among “America’s Best Doctors.”
Dr. Esselstyn has authored a book, “Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease,” in which he describes a 20-year study of patients with severe cardiac disease who participated in a nutrition program that, through clinical evidence, stopped and reversed their heart disease. It is the longest study of its kind ever conducted. Dr. Esselstyn believes that stroke may be prevented by using a similar approach.
In addition to Dr. Esselstyn, Raveendran Meleth, M.D., board certified internist and full professor at the University of Alabama Medical Center, will speak on hypertension and its relevance in stroke prevention.  Meleth, who has special training in neurology, will also review current practice in hypertension management. He currently manages a “Memory Clinic” at Cary Medical Center.
A third presenter, Danielle Louder, ardiovascular disease specialist with the Maine Department of Human Services associated with the Maine Center’s for Disease Control and Prevention, Cardiovascular Health Program, will discuss a statewide effort to establish consistent approaches to both the prevention and management of stroke.
Pre-registration is required and the cost of registration, which includes lunch, is $60 ($15 for students).  Application has been made for up to 4 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits. Certificates of Attendance will also be available.
FMI contact Kim Parent at 207-498-1112.