The Secret Life of Myofibroblasts: Dr. Boris Hinz reveals all!

Boris Hinz PhD, University of Toronto, Ontario, CA presents "Fundamental aspects of myofibroblast contraction." and explains how the process is both simple and complex. How do these little cells do such big things? More importantly, what steps in the process go wrong to result in Dupuytren's and what can be done to safely and simply correct this? Watch the video and see: http://www.youtube.com/user/DupuytrenFoundation#p/u/0/fvmRS3OiWic

Funding for these and other Miami Dupuytren Symposium videos at http://dupuytrensymposium.com/program.html, is provided by the Dupuytren Foundation. Support the Dupuytren Foundation with an online donation: http://CureDup.com.

Dupuytren's vs. Burns! Video: Dr. Paul Zidel at the 2010 Miami Dupuytren Symposium

Dr. Paul Zidel, Chief, Hand Surgery, Maricopa Medical Center, Phoenix, Arizona, presents a thought provoking comparison of two different yet similar conditions in "Dupuytren's versus burn scar contracture"
http://www.youtube.com/user/DupuytrenFoundation#p/u/0/uR5OcoIKfOI
Hypertrophic scars, Ledderhose disease, burn scars, keloid scars, desmoid tumors, pulmonary fibrosis, arteriosclerosis and other abnormal fibrosing conditions share some of the same complex biology as Dupuytren's. Answers found for one condition may apply to others - there are many stones yet unturned in the path to find a cure for Dupuytren's. Support the effort at http://CureDup.com

Video: Professor Millesi at the Miami Dupuytren's Symposium

Professor Hanno Millesi of the Millesi Center in Vienna, chairman of the 1983 Dupuytren's Meeting in Vienna, presents "Changes of the visco-elastic properties of the palmar fascia as pathogenetic basis of Dupuytren's Disease": http://www.youtube.com/user/DupuytrenFoundation#p/u/0/vRc9XFBOVTk. The more one investigates, the deeper the mystery of Dupuytren's becomes. The legendary Dr. Millesi explores the chicken and egg aspect of the mechanics of Dupuytren's.
These and other videos are archived at http://dupuytrensymposium.com/program.html and are made possible through funding by the Dupuytren Foundation. Please support further research and education by giving to the Dupuytren Foundation at http://CureDup.com

Video: Dr. Wolfgang Wach at the 2010 Dupuytren Symposium

Dr. Wolfgang Wach, founder of the Dupuytren Society (http://www.dupuytren-online.info/), discusses the development, value and future of the Dupuytren Society in this video from the 2010 International Symposium on Dupuytren's Disease. The Dupuytren Society is the largest, most visited patient oriented Dupuytren's resource on the internet. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F_8did7Pr78

Video Presentations of the 2010 Miami Dupuytren Symposium on YouTube

The Miami Dupuytren Symposium was very exciting. Presentations were recorded on video, and are finally making their way through post processing to be available on line. Free. For you - courtesy of the Dupuytren Foundation. These will be released weekly. Each presentation is at least 15 minutes, and most will take some time to digest, so get comfortable, and get to know the people who are working around the world to find a cure for Dupuytren's and related conditions.

The first video is the introductory and welcoming remarks by Dr. Charles Eaton.
http://www.youtube.com/user/DupuytrenFoundation#p/u/0/E4qAoklf4sE

Enjoy!

Stony Brook Dupuytren Symposium

I had the opportunity to attend the Stony Brook Dupuytren Symposium April 17. This was a real treat, featuring a faculty of well known authorities on Dupuytren's. The volcanic ash European flight difficulties prevented attendance of only one speaker. The symposium covered a range of topics and in addition provided an in depth tour of the use of collagenase injection for Dupuytren's from the initial concept, through proof of concept in laboratory tests and then clinical trials, to clinical application, indications and issues. This is a monumental achievement for Drs. Hurst and Badalamente, and a testimony to their insight and persistence. Plans were also discussed to jointly present the materials from the Stony Brook and the upcoming Miami Dupuytren Symposium (http://www.DupuytrenSymposium.com) together as one book, to be published by the American Society for Surgery of the Hand (http://www.assh.org). What a promising year for Dupuytren's!

Stony Brook Dupuytren Symposium

What a year for Dupuytren's! Xiaflex is FDA approved, the 2010 International Symposium on Dupuytren's Disease http://www.DupuytrenSymposium.com is coming up May 22,23 in Miami, and now Stony Brook University Medical Center Department Of Orthopaedics has announced its Dupuytren’s Disease Symposium Saturday, April 17th, 2010 in Stony Brook, New York. The program flier is http://sbumc.informatics.sunysb.edu/sbumcfiles/Dupuytrens%20brochure.pdf. The program lists an international faculty and reviews Dupuytren's biology in addition to a spectrum of management options to straighten fingers bent by Dupuytren's. The Stony Brook Symposium will be a perfect complement to the Miami Symposium's goals of presenting new research and establishing a coalition to work toward a cure for Dupuytren's disease and related conditions.

Dupuytren Symposium Program Listing

The 2010 International Symposium on Dupuytren's Disease http://dupuytrensymposium.com is one step closer. The faculty http://dupuytrensymposium.com/presenters.html and program syllabus  http://dupuytrensymposium.com/program.html are now available for review. This continues the collaboration to find a cure.

The Dupuytren Symposium is coming!

As tomorrow's deadline for abstract submission nears, internet connections are heating up at command central for the 2010 International Symposium on Dupuytren's Disease. The symposium syllabus looks very exciting, with some amazing new reports. Session topics have solidified as: The Myofibroblast; Genetics and Demographics; Disease Concepts; Collagen and Collagenase; Surgical Treatments; Energy Based Treatments; Manual Therapies; The Future. The Saturday evening dinner presentation will be on the life of Dupuytren. Overall, everything is shaping up well, so get ready. Stragglers, submit your abstracts! Otherwise, register to attend - space will be limited! http://www.DupuytrenSymposium.com

To understand Dupuytren's, first understand women.

Is Dupuytren's a tumor - an independent growth, or is it a reaction of normal tissues to a stimulus? Is a woman one person or several people sharing the same body? This paper answers both questions. Every female human has two X chromosomes, one from each parent, but in any individual cell, only one X chromosome is active, the other permanently inactivated. One X chromosome rules half of a woman's cells, the other rules the other half, and these cells are evenly mixed throughout her body. Now, true neoplastic tumors are clones: one cell reproduces over and over, and so in females all cells of a tumor will have the same active X chromosome. In contrast, reactive tumors are many adjacent cells responding to a common stimulus, and will have a normal mix of active X chromosomes. This fact was used to show that Dupuytren's nodules are not true tumors, not bad cells, but a reaction of normal cells to some stimulus. What is it? http://www.dupuytrenfoundation.org/DupPDFs/2006_Wang_1040.pdf

First International Dupuytren's Symposium

Plans are underway to organize the first International Symposium on Dupuytren's Disease, to be held in South Florida May or June 2010, coordinated jointly by the Dupuytren Foundation and the Dupuytren Society. The goal of the symposium is to raise awareness regarding Dupuytren's disease and related conditions and to promote cooperative efforts to find a cure.
Dupuytren's is the most common of the fibrosing diseases, and inroads into its treatment have potential impact in the management of more life threatening conditions with similar biology. The symposium will be a gathering of researchers and clinicians with a wide spectrum of interests: cell biology, genomics, surgery, pharmacotherapy, radiotherapy, biomechanics - as they relate to Dupuytren's and related conditions. It will be a way to share insights and discuss potential new approaches to work for a cure.