2026 Symposium
The Vascular Access Society of the Americas invites you to participate as an exhibitor at the 2026 Vascular Access for Dialysis Symposium, May 20-22, 2026 at the Hilton Salt Lake City Center in Salt Lake City, Utah.
This Symposium is designed for all transplant, vascular and general surgeons, nephrologists, interventional radiologists and nephrologists, nurses and allied health professionals who are interested in the management of vascular access. The VASA Symposium is an excellent opportunity for your company to showcase its products and services to a multidisciplinary audience committed to advancing dialysis patient care.
The Program Committee is busy planning an excellent scientific meeting that will include:
- State-of-the-art lectures covering all major areas in dialysis access
- Diverse multi-disciplinary faculty including prominent international
- speakers representing Europe, Asia, Canada, South America, & Japan
- 40 scientific abstract presentations
- Vascular access nursing and allied health
- New devices and technologies
- Video presentations
Now accepting Abstracts
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WEDNESDAY, MAY 20, 2026 |
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07:00 AM - 08:00 AM |
Breakfast |
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ALLIED HEALTH |
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08:00 AM - 08:05 AM |
Welcome |
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08:05 AM - 08:20 AM |
ESKD Life Plan and Access Plan |
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08:20 AM - 08:50 AM |
AV Access Creation, HD Catheter and PD Placement |
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08:50 AM - 09:35 AM |
Patient Models at Stations: 1-min Check with Patients, Physical Exams |
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09:35 AM - 09:55 AM |
Break |
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09:55 AM - 10:25 AM |
VASA Toolkit for Show & Tell |
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10:25 AM - 10:55 AM |
Cannulation Stations |
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10:55 AM - 11:40 AM |
ANNA Intermountain Chapter Collboration Session: 360 degree Care of the Nephrology Patient |
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11:40 AM - 12:05 PM |
The Holland Keynote Lecture |
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12:05 PM - 01:05 PM |
Lunch |
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CANNULATION |
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01:05 PM - 01:13 PM |
Plastic Cannulas for HD Cannulation |
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01:13 PM - 01:21 PM |
Eradicating Area Cannulation / Dead Space Between Dialysis Needles |
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01:21 PM - 01:29 PM |
Covered Stent Grafts in Cannulation Segment |
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01:29 PM - 01:37 PM |
Image Guided Access Cannulation |
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01:37 PM - 01:45 PM |
Buttonhole Cannulation |
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01:45 PM - 01:53 PM |
Self Cannulation |
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01:53 PM - 02:13 PM |
Cannulation Issues and Solutions: Americas and Beyond |
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02:13 PM - 02:33 PM |
Break |
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USRDS |
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02:33 PM - 02:45 PM |
Welcome |
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02:45 PM - 02:57 PM |
Fresenius or Davita: a Response |
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02:57 PM - 03:09 PM |
How Can We Get Nephrologists to Refer Patients for Access Earlier? |
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03:09 PM - 03:21 PM |
Artificial Intelligence will Save the Day (or Not) |
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03:21 PM - 03:33 PM |
IPRO: IS CMS Oversight Effective? |
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03:33 PM - 03:45 PM |
Not a One-and-Done: Role of Surgeons in Longitudinal Access Surveillance and Maintenance |
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03:45 PM - 03:55 PM |
Break |
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ACCESS PARADIGM |
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03:55 PM - 04:07 PM |
Centralization of HD Access Care to Specialized Centers |
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04:07 PM - 04:22 PM |
DEBATE: OBL Vascular Access Centers vs Hospitals: The Good and the Bad Speaker: John Ross, MD |
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04:27 PM - 04:39 PM |
Shared Decision Making - How? |
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04:39 PM - 04:51 PM |
Home Hemodialysis |
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04:51 PM - 05:11 PM |
Keynote Lecture - Current Status of Swine Renal Xenotransplantation |
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THURSDAY, MAY 21, 2026 |
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07:00 AM - 08:00 AM |
Breakfast |
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08:00 AM - 08:05 AM |
Opening Remarks |
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08:05 AM - 08:25 AM |
VASA Presidential Address |
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AUTOGENOUS AV FISTULA |
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08:25 AM - 08:37 AM |
Vein Mapping: Ultrasound vs Venography |
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08:37 AM - 08:49 AM |
Which AVF is Best? Speaker: Mohamad Hussain, MD, PhD |
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08:49 AM - 09:01 AM |
Criteria and Predictors for Maturation |
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09:01 AM - 09:13 AM |
The Immature AVF: Methods to Induce Maturation |
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09:13 AM - 09:25 AM |
Endo AVF's - The Current Evidence and Role |
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09:25 AM - 09:45 AM |
Debate: EndoAVF is Done vs Surgical Access Deserts |
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09:45 AM - 10:05 AM |
Break |
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AV GRAFT |
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10:05 AM - 10:17 AM |
AV Graft Materials and Configurations Speaker: Jeffrey Lawson, MD, PhD |
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10:17 AM - 10:29 AM |
HeRO Graft - Pros and Cons |
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10:29 AM - 10:35 AM |
M&M Case |
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10:35 AM - 10:41 AM |
M&M Case |
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MANAGEMENT OF ACCESS COMPLICATIONS |
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10:41 AM - 10:53 AM |
Management of HAIDI: Which Therapy in Which Stage? |
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10:53 AM - 11:05 AM |
Preventing HAIDI (Hemodialysis Access Induced Distal Ischemia) |
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11:05 AM - 11:25 AM |
Break |
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11:25 AM - 11:37 AM |
High Flow Access Management: Surgical Speaker: John Ross, MD |
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11:37 AM - 11:49 AM |
High Flow Access Management: Endovascular |
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11:49 AM - 12:01 PM |
Surgical and Endovascular Managemet of Aneurysms in AVF's |
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12:01 PM - 12:13 PM |
AV Graft Pseudoaneurysms Treatment Options |
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12:13 PM - 12:43 PM |
The Henry Keynote Lecture |
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12:43 PM - 01:43 PM |
Lunch |
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AV ACCESS MAINTENANCE |
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01:43 PM - 01:55 PM |
Access Surveillance - Optimal Methods |
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01:55 PM - 02:07 PM |
Biology of Intimal Hyperplasia and Strategies for Prevention |
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02:07 PM - 02:19 PM |
Covered Stents at the Venous Anastomosis: First Line or Last Line? Speaker: Dheeraj Rajan, MD, FRCPC, FSIR, FACR |
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02:19 PM - 02:31 PM |
Drug-Coated Balloons - Most Recent Data |
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02:31 PM - 02:43 PM |
Central Venous Stenosis - When to Treat and How? |
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02:43 PM - 02:55 PM |
Bare vs Covered Stents for Central Veins: What to Use? |
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02:55 PM - 03:15 PM |
Debate: Venous Anastomosis Stenosis: POBA, DCB, Stent, Stent Graft, Revise? |
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03:15 PM - 03:35 PM |
Break |
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03:35 PM - 03:47 PM |
Stent Venous Anastomosis - Consult with Vascular Surgeon or Just Do It? |
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03:47 PM - 03:59 PM |
Stent vs HeRO for Arm Swelling Due to Central Stenosis |
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03:59 PM - 04:05 PM |
Declotting AV Grafts: How I Do It (Vascular Surgeon) |
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04:05 PM - 04:11 PM |
Declotting AV Grafts: How I Do It (Interventional Nephrologist) |
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04:11 PM - 04:17 PM |
Declotting AV Grafts: How I Do It (Interventional Radiologist) |
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04:17 PM - 04:29 PM |
Impact of Hypotension on AV Access |
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04:29 PM - 04:41 PM |
Post Transplant Access Management: Keep or Ligate? |
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04:41 PM - 05:01 PM |
Break |
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NEW TECHNOLOGY |
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05:01 PM - 05:07 PM |
Xeltis |
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05:07 PM - 05:13 PM |
New Technology 2 |
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05:13 PM - 05:19 PM |
New Technology 3 |
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05:19 PM - 05:25 PM |
New Technology 4 |
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05:25 PM - 05:31 PM |
New Technology 5 |
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05:31 PM - 05:37 PM |
New Technology 6 |
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FRIDAY, MAY 22, 2026 |
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07:00 AM - 08:00 AM |
Breakfast |
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PERITONEAL DIALYSIS |
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08:00 AM - 08:12 AM |
Patient Considerations for PD: Pros and Cons vs HD |
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08:12 AM - 08:18 AM |
How I Do It : PD Catheter Insertion (Surgery) |
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08:18 AM - 08:24 AM |
How I Do It : PD Catheter Insertion (Interventional Nephrology) |
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08:24 AM - 08:30 AM |
How I Do It : PD Catheter Insertion (Interventional Radiology) |
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08:30 AM - 08:50 AM |
Debate: Who Should be First Line for PD Catheter Insertion? |
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08:50 AM - 09:02 AM |
Management of PD Catheter Dysfunction |
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09:02 AM - 09:22 AM |
Debate: Fistula First or PD Catheter First? |
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09:22 AM - 09:42 AM |
Break |
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HEMODIALYSIS CVC's |
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09:42 AM - 09:54 AM |
Femoral TDC's: Always Bad? |
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09:54 AM - 10:06 AM |
When the IJ's are Gone: Where to Go? |
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10:06 AM - 10:18 AM |
Catheter Locks, Dressings, and Coatings: What Works? |
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10:18 AM - 10:30 AM |
Avoiding IV's and PICC Lines in CKD Patients: HOW?? |
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MISC AV ACCESS TOPICS |
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10:30 AM - 10:42 AM |
Myth or Reality: Axillary Lymph Node Dissections - Impactful on Access? |
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10:42 AM - 10:54 AM |
Nerve Blocks for Access Creation and Maintenance |
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10:54 AM - 11:06 AM |
Blood Pump Speed and Fistula/Graft Survival |
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11:06 AM - 11:18 AM |
AI and Robotics in Dialysis Vascular Access: Future is Now |
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11:18 AM - 11:30 AM |
Frailty and Multi-Morbidity |
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11:30 AM - 11:42 AM |
ESKD Life Plan and Access Plan: Surgery Perspective vs Practice Bldg |
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11:42 AM - 11:54 AM |
Access for Morbid Obesity |
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11:54 AM - 12:06 PM |
Flow Volume Measurements |
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12:06 PM - 12:18 PM |
TBD |
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12:18 PM - 12:30 PM |
TBD |
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12:30 PM - 01:30 PM |
Lunch |
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TOP ABSTRACTS |
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01:30 PM - 01:38 PM |
Abstract 1 |
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01:38 PM - 01:46 PM |
Abstract 2 |
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01:46 PM - 01:54 PM |
Abstract 3 |
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01:54 PM - 02:02 PM |
Abstract 4 |
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02:02 PM - 02:10 PM |
Abstract 5 |
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INTERNATIONAL FORUM |
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02:10 PM - 03:25 PM |
Dialysis Controversies Across the Continents |
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03:25 PM - 03:30 PM |
Closing Remarks |