2nd AAGL Hysteroscopy Summit: Let There Be Light
Globally, millions of people witnessed the awe-inspiring spectacle of the total solar eclipse. The moon moved in front of the sun, and for a few precious moments, day turned into night. We witnessed the zone of totality, where the sun’s corona, usually obscured by the sun’s bright light became visible. The awe-inspiring spectacle of the total eclipse turned daylight into night as we witnessed the zone of totality and allowed astronomers a better view to study stars and the cosmos.
Metaphorically, the hysteroscopic journey offers an illuminated and tantalizing voyage into the zone of uterine totality, the inner sanctum of the female body. Both the hysteroscope and the eclipse provide fleeting explorations into the realms and secrets usually hidden from view. The hysteroscope illuminates the uterus, revealing its secrets: images of the majestic endocervix, endometrial cavity, proximal tubal ostia, aberrations seen with endometrial cancer, retained products of conception, missed abortion, and more, just as the eclipse reveals the secrets of the sun’s corona. Two different journeys, in two vastly different realms, but both filled with discovery, reverence, awe, and wonder.
Another epic and historic event, the 2nd AAGL Hysteroscopy Summit was held in sunny Fort Lauderdale, Florida, March 8-9, 2024. The event was well attended by physicians, exhibitors, and a distinguished international roster of eloquent faculty.
As my Co-Chairs, Dr. Tony Carugno, Dr. Nash Moawad, and I planned the meeting, we wanted it to resonate with the principles of “edutainment,” educational and entertaining. Captivating lectures illuminated the shrouded mysteries of the endometrial cavity. We met our goals with robust lectures including one by one of our living legacies, Dr. Frank Loffer, who provided a reflection on the History of Hysteroscopy. It was reverent and poignant, highlighting our unique journey of traveling from darkness into light to explore the uterine cavity.
More than twenty-five lectures were delivered by renowned hysteroscopic experts including a list of “who’s who:” Drs. Haimovich, Garcia, Robinson, Munro, Lasmar, Singh, Anderson, Nahas, Bettocchi, Catena, Pacheco, Hanstede, Grimbizis, Isaacson, Salazar, Kumar, Moawad, and Carugno, who provided sage advice, exceptional videos, personal anecdotes, and evidence-based literature review of their individual topics. Newer topics presented included hysteroscopic treatment of missed abortion, treatment for Asherman’s syndrome, isthmocele, treatment of adenomyosis, and methods to decrease hysteroscopic complications.
The participants were highly engaged, not even drawn away by the beautiful beach, but rather they stayed until the end of all sessions and peppered the faculty with queries and debates, and urged the faculty to provide more research and outcomes data in the future.
It was a historical event, not just “another hysteroscopy meeting.” Written and verbal accolades including, “this exceeded my expectations, was educational, well-organized, and exceptional,” were sited throughout the evaluations and feedback we received.
Like the recent eclipse, this two-day AAGL Hysteroscopy Summit was like a pilgrimage and was fleeting, but this visionary meeting left a most profound impression on its attendees. It offered a brief window into the cosmic, a glimpse of the universe’s hidden beauty. Though two different journeys in two vastly different realms, both are filled with awe, new understandings, and inspire in us a desire to learn more.
Unlike the celestial event of the total eclipse that reoccurs in more than two decades, we promise that the 3rd AAGL Hysteroscopy Summit will return in just two years. You won’t need your eclipse glasses, but you will need to bring your hysteroscopic passion, wonder and discovery with you!
