Please join us on Saturday, April 29, when The Societies for Pediatric Urology (SPU) host their 71st Annual Meeting during the AUA Annual Meeting in beautiful downtown Chicago. Program Chair Dr Casey Seideman (Oregon Health & Science University) and Associate Chair Dr Candace Granberg (Mayo Clinic) plan to show us “The Future of Pediatric Urology.” The future is of course bright, and the program highlights many of the early- and mid-career pediatric urologists who will bring us there.

The SPU program includes 21 moderators and presenters who will educate the room in 5 arenas relevant to the practice of pediatric urology:

Future of Technology:

Incorporation of thulium laser and posterior tibial nerve stimulation

Machine learning for clinical decision-making

Gender Diversity:

Advocacy and multidisciplinary care

Peritoneal flap vaginoplasty

Future of the Workforce:

Training the right number of fellows for health of the specialty

Future of telehealth

Need for fetal intervention specialists

Future Considerations:

Diversity

Impact of microaggressions

Ethical considerations for our future

Power Hour: A mere 12 minutes each to sell novel concepts to the group

Fusion toxins

Robotic fetal surgery

Harness the electronic medical record

Future of contrast enhanced ultrasound

From among the spectrum of thoughtful and practical sessions above, several particularly pertinent topics have been in the public eye and on our minds over the past year and will continue to be a focus:

• Safe and comprehensive care of gender-diverse children and teens
• True realization of diversity and inclusion in pediatric urology and more globally, and
• Projected changes in fetal medicine interventions after Dobbs decision

To preview the entire list of topics and presenters, see https://spuonline.org/meeting/program/2023/.

Named Lectures and Society Representation

Dr Linda Baker and the SPU Research Award Committee will announce the next SPU Research Grant recipient and their brilliant research objectives.

Complementary to Saturday’s overarching theme of peering into our future, 2 notable annual named lectures selected by SPU leadership will be given during the Annual Meeting.

During the SPU program on Saturday, Dr Mark Cain (Seattle Children’s) will give the Meredith Campbell lecture, “Career Trajectory in Pediatric Urology: What Can We Do to Identify, Support, and Nurture Each Stage?” Dr Cain will share the how and why of career-long engagement in our collective future.

On Sunday morning during the AUA plenary session, Dr Jonathan Routh (Duke University) will give the John Duckett Memorial Lecture: “Innovation by Necessity: Improving Urodynamics for Children With Spina Bifida.” Dr Routh was given the formidable task of convincing us that machines will indeed be more accurate at reading urodynamics than a pediatric urologist could ever hope to be. It is for the children, so may the best machine win.

Two additional lively and informative panels are also crafted by members of the Societies for Pediatric Urology during the Plenary session on Sunday. Dr Hillary Copp will unleash her pro (Drs Tony Khoury and Erin McNamara) debaters and con (Drs Julian Wan and Vijay Vemulakonda) debaters in a crossfire exploration of critical management decisions for vesicoureteral reflux. Next up in the Plenary, Moderator Dr Greg Tasian and his panelists (Drs Nicolette Janzen, Dave Chu, Jonathan Ellison, and Ubirajara Barroso Jr) will drive up and down the urinary tract illustrating the current optimal approaches to pediatric stone disease.

Many ideas will be explored at the SPU meeting and AUA pediatric sessions. Stop by or risk being the last to hear the latest about the future of pediatric urology.