Prizes

Robert Greenblatt Prize

Robert B. Greenblatt, co-founder and first President of the International Menopause Society, originally conceived the idea of awarding prizes at all World Menopause Congresses to the two junior investigators who presented the best papers in the field of menopause, from both basic science and clinical points of view. >From many interesting entries, a short list of five applicants was selected and these doctors were asked to give a brief summary of their papers at a special session for IMS Prizes at the Congress.

The standard of the presentations was very high but the judges finally awarded the prizes, each of US$ 2500, to two candidates, one from Italy and one from the UK. Dr David Sturdee gave the Prize for Basic Science to Dr Jenifer Sassarini, from the University of Glasgow, UK, for her paper on ‘Enhanced peripheral vascular reactivity seen in flushing women is altered by treatment with venlafaxine’. Dr Angelo Santamaria, from the University of Messina, Italy, was awarded the Prize for Clinical Science for his paper on ‘One-year effects of myo-inositol supplementation in postmenopausal women with metabolic syndrome: a prospective, randomized placebo-controlled study’.

Henry Burger Prize

The Henry Burger Prize, named to mark the great contribution that Professor Henry Burger has made to the field of menopause, is awarded to the investigator who is judged as having published the most significant contribution(s) to the field of menopause in basic science or clinical studies in the 2-year period immediately following the preceding World Congress.

There were several very worthy nominations for the Prize, but the judges finally awarded the 2011 Prize to Professor Susan Davis of Monash University, Australia for her research evaluating the efficacy and safety of testosterone therapy for postmenopausal women. Professor Davis gave a fascinating summary of her work in the IMS Prizes session after which Dr Sturdee presented the Prize certificate to her.