Topics included treating aortic lesions (OA Dr. Florian Huber, Department of Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgery, OA Dr. Pierre Schmit, Central Radiology Institute at the Kepler University Hospital) and complex interdisciplinary elective care (Univ. Prof. Dr. Andreas Zierer, head of the Department of Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgery, OA Dr. Peter Pichler, Central Radiology Institute at the Kepler University Hospital, OA Dr. Hannes Müller, Department of Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgery, OA Dr. Georg Hagleitner, Central Radiology Institute at the Kepler University Hospital).

The JKU medSPACE, a future-oriented, high-resolution multifunctional space, is located in the new teaching and research building at the JKU’s Faculty of Medicine. The medSPACE technology is not only used to take students on a virtual journey of the human body as part of anatomy class, it can also broadcast live from operating rooms at the Kepler University Hospital. Technological advancements in the field of surgical and endovascular therapy are applied to treat acute and chronic diseases of the thoracoabdominal aorta, showing that it is becoming increasingly important for professionals to collaborate in an interdisciplinary way. As a result, specialized centers can now do what was unthinkable 10 to 15 years ago and apply new technologies and procedures to treat pathological changes in the aorta.