DANUBE CHIP&CTO 2026

DANUBE current for driving international cooperation and innovations in CHIP&CTO

Preliminary Program

DAY 1 – Thursday, 23 April 2026

07:00 – 08:00Start registration | Welcome Coffee
08:00 – 08:10Welcome Address (Board of Directors: Alexander Geppert, Rayyan Hemetsberger, Johann Sipötz)
08:10 – 11:00Session 1 | Live Cases 1 + 2: “Challenges when using MCS”

Joint Session with the Association for Acute CardioVascular Care (ACVC)

ACVC Logo

Panel: Michael Buerke, Michael Behnes, Konstantin Krychtiuk (ACVC)
Moderator: Masahisa Yamane | Cardiac Surgeon: Sigrid Sandner | Provoker: Georg Delle-Karth | Imaging Specialist: Muhamet Sinani


Live Case 1: INTERNATIONAL Presentation and Strategy discussion with panel
Saitama Sekishinkai Hospital, Japan | moderated by Masahisa Yamane
powered by ASAHI INTECC
Live Case 2: LOCAL Presentation and Strategy discussion with panel
Vienna | Operator: Mohamed Ayoub, Rayyan Hemetsberger
powered by Cordis Medical GmbH

Surgical Viewpoint: Are there any surgical options if PCI fails? – Sigrid Sandner

  • Protected PCI and cardiogenic shock: where are we in 2026? – Janine Pöss
  • MCS weaning: what the CHIP operator must know – Christophe Vandenbriele
  • Avoid bleeding! My tips and tricks for a perfect uncomplicated access closure – Serdar Farhan

    Back to Live Cases 1 + 2
  • 11:00 – 11:30Coffee Break & Exhibition
    11:30 – 13:30Session 2 | Live cases 3 + 4 – “COMMUNICATION saves lives: CATH LAB MEETS ICU”

    Panel: Nike Preis, Maximilian Tscharre, Ronny Binder, Pierfrancesco Agostoni
    Moderator: Jurij Avramovic | Cardiac Surgeon: Gabriel Weiss | Provoker: Andrejs Erglis | Imaging Specialist: Ali Najdawi

    Live case 3: INTERNATIONAL Presentation and Strategy discussion with panel
    Cluj-Napoca, Romania | Operator: Mihai Cocoi, Alexandru Achim
    Live case 4: CTO-PCI of an occluded RCA after 1x failed antegrade attempt
    Vienna | Operator: Sevket Görgülü, Johann Sipötz

    Surgical viewpoint are there any surgical options if PCI fails ? - Gabriel Weiss

  • When the patient crashes - scene 1: In the Cath-Lab - Alexander Geppert
  • When the patient crashes - scene 2: The CHIP patient on the ICU: special needs? - Michael Buerke

    Back to live cases 3 + 4
  • 13:30 – 14:45Lunch Break & Exhibition
    14:00 – 14:45Lunchsymposium

    Streamlining severe calcium modification with LithiX HC-IVL - Johan R. Bennett (Belgium)
    powered by Novomed Handelsgesellschaft m.b.H

    DCB in CTO - Dan Prunea (Austria)
    powered by Medtronic Österreich GmbH
    14:00 – 14:45Case-Based Complication Management Workshop (Workshop Room - first Floor)
    Moderators: Nike Preis, Matthias Ebner, Christian Gerges

    In this focused workshop session, we present four submitted best cases in an intimate setting. This format is designed for maximum peer-to-peer exchange, allowing for a detailed discussion of procedural challenges and 'tips and tricks' between the presenters and the audience.

    BestCase A: A misstep that moved us forward - Teodor Bajeu
    BestCase B: Massive Longitudinal Stent deformation due to jailed ROTAWIRE: when the problem is the Solution - Karim Elbasha
    BestCase C: From Reverse-CART to Catastrophe - Dan Pascut
    BestCase D: Anchored in stone, A stent’s costly journey - George Shenoda
    14:45 – 17:00Session 3 | Live cases 5 + 6 - “Challenges in CTO-PCI and how to manage them”

    Panel: Dan Ioanes, Ludovit Baldovsky, Hannes Alber, Roman Ondrejcak. Sevket Görgülü
    Moderator: Mohamed Ayoub | Cardiac Surgeon: Gabriel Weiss | Provoker: Nenad Bozinovic | Imaging Specialist: Ali Najdawi

    Live case 5: LOCAL Presentation and Strategy discussion with panel
    Vienna | Operator: Serdar Farhan, Rayyan Hemetsberger
    powered by SIS Medical AG
    Live case 6: INTERNATIONAL Presentation and Strategy discussion with panel
    Oradea, Romania | Operator: Mihnea Nichita Brendea

    Surgical viewpoint are there any surgical options if PCI fails ? - Gabriel Weiss

  • Septal hematoma management - Mohamed Ayoub
  • Side branch/main branch perforation management - Pierfrancesco Agostoni
  • Uncrossable antegrade/retrograde cap - Joao Brum Silveira

    Back to live cases 5 + 6
  • 17:00 – 17:30Coffee Break & Exhibition
    17:30 – 18:30Session 4 | Industry Workshops

    How Photoncounting CT can streamline my CTO and CHIP procedures: clinical cases presentations
    Andreas Kammerlander, Dietrich Beitzke

    powered by Siemens Healthcare Diagnostics GmbH
    18:30End of Day 1
    19:00Congress Dinner

    DAY 2 – Friday, 24 April 2026

    08:00Welcome Coffee
    08:30 – 09:30Session 5 | LUCCA 5.0 meets DANUBE CHIP & CTO Meeting 2026
    A Highlight of international collaboration in interventional cardiology: LUCCA 5.0 (Lucerne complex and calcified PCI Meeting 5.0) meets DANUBE CHIP & CTO Meeting 2026

    Live connected
    Panel LUCCA: Florim Cuculi, Matthias Bossard, Adrian Attinger
    Panel DANUBE: Rayyan Hemetsberger, Johann Sipötz, Alexander Geppert

    presentations and discussions
    BestCase A from LUCCA
    BestCase B: Pleural, Not Pericardial: A Twist in Coronary Complications - Dace Sondore
    BestCase C from LUCCA
    BestCase D: Is rotablation in the body of the CTO after RCART an option for treatmet of a severely calcified CTO of the RCA - Achim Burger

    Live poll and winner presentation
    09:30 – 09:40Coffee Intermission in the Exhibition
    09:40 – 12:00Session 6 | Live cases 7 + 8 – “Calcium the remaining enemy”

    Panel: Dace Sondore, Gert Richardt, Branislav Liska, Martin Haas, Faridun Daniel Rahimi
    Moderator: Ovidiu Anchidin | Cardiac Surgeon: Gabriel Weiss | Provoker: Stylianos Pyxaras | Imaging Specialist: Muhamet Sinani

    Live case 7: ostial RCA CTO post CABG with 1x failed retrograde CTO-PCI 2022 and red. LVF
    Vienna | Operator: Masahisa Yamane | Zoltan Ruzsa
    powered by Terumo Deutschland GmbH
    Live case 8: INTERNATIONAL NILE meets DANUBE Presentation and Strategy discussion with panel
    Asswan, Egypt | Operator: Ahmed El Guindy

    Surgical viewpoint are there any surgical options if PCI fails ? - Gabriel Weiss

  • Individualized ablative strategy - Nader Mankerious
  • Balloon based strategy : what the latest data teach us - Mohammad Abdelghani
  • The Future of Calcium-directed therapies - Haroon Kamran
    Back to live cases 7 + 8
  • 12:00 – 13:15Lunch Break & Exhibition
    12:30 – 13:15Lunchsymposium

    Medis QFR in clinical routine - including hands-on session - Mathias Stöckl

    powered by Neucomed GmbH
    13:15 – 16:15Session 7 | Live cases 9 - 11 – “The final steps in CHIP/CTO PCI”

    Panel: Michael Kurz, Mathias Stöckl, Roman Stipal, Aleksandar Janjičić, Serdar Farhan
    Moderator: Marin Postu | Cardiac Surgeon: Daniel Zimpfer | Provoker: Mohamed Ayoub | Imaging Specialist: Faridun Daniel Rahimi

    Live case 9: INTERNATIONAL Presentation and Strategy discussion with panel
    Lahr, Germany | Operator: Myron Zaczkiewicz
    Live case 10: heavy calcified ostial RCA CTO after failed antegrade attempt 2023 and 1x failed retrograde attempt via epicardial collaterals earlier this year
    Vienna | Operator: Stylianos Pyxaras, Pierfrancesco Agostoni
    powered by ShockWave Medical GmbH
    Live case 11: INTERNATIONAL Presentation and strategy discussion with panel
    Bucharest, Romania | Operator: Dan Deleanu, Iulian Călin

    Surgical viewpoint are there any surgical options if PCI fails ? - Daniel Zimpfer

  • Is there a place for BRS in CTO/CHIP-PCI? - Johan Bennett
  • DCB in CTO/CHIP- do the results meet our goals? - Rayyan Hemetsberger
  • IVI in decision making for the final step in CTO-PCI - Mohamed Ben Abdessalem
  • Restenosis in full metall jacket: are there any surgical options? Martin Grabenwöger

    Back to live case 9 - 11
  • 16:15Wrap up and farewell
    16:30Special Joint Educational Event
    Live Transmission from the Warsaw CTO Symposium


    Keynote: Managing my ego: when should I stop?
    Paul Knaapen, Amsterdam
    16:40


    and for those who want to stay a little bit longer...

    Hot Topic Round Table:

    Practice in Transition? The impact of the BCIS3 and IVUS-CHIP studies on everyday care

    17:30End of Day 2