Congratulations to the 2025 Kosaka Best Abstract Award Winners!

Focusing on groundbreaking research on a wide range of topics related to anesthesiology and patient care, nine finalists, selected from over 1,000 submitted abstracts, revealed vital investigative findings during oral presentations at the “Kosaka Best Abstracts Session,” on Sunday, March 23 at the 2025 Annual Meeting, presented by IARS and SOCCA. Their leading-edge investigations were divided into three categories: basic science, clinical research, and research conducted by a scholar. Each presenter provided an in-depth spotlight on their research and was met with thoughtful questions from the audience.

Following their presentations, the expert judges, Beverley A. Orser, OOnt, MD, PhD, FRSC, FRCPC, FCAHS, Immediate Past President of the IARS Board and Chair, Department of Anesthesia at the University of Toronto, Daniel I. McIsaac, MD, MPH, FRCPC, IARS Board Member and Chair in Innovative Perioperative Care, Faculty of Medicine at University of Ottawa and a scientist at the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Duminda Wijeysundera, MD, PhD, FRCPC, FAHA, IARS Board Member, and Professor, Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, and a scientist, Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute, St. Michael’s Hospital, Max B. Kelz, MD, PhD, IARS Board Member and Director for Research Education, Department of Anesthesiology; Director, Dripps Research Fellowship Program; Founding Director NEURRAL Center; MSTP Program Steering Committee; Vice Chair for Research, Department of Anesthesiology & Critical Care, at the University of Pennsylvania, Perelman School of Medicine, and Yasuko Nagasaka, MD, PhD, professor in anesthesia, chair at Tokyo Women’s Medical University and representative for the Japan Society of Clinical Anesthesia (JSCA), deliberated and selected the awardees for each category. Congratulations to the three Kosaka Best Abstract Award Winners!

Peter Santer, MD, DPhil, an anesthesiology resident on the Clinical Scientist Research Track at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, was selected as the Top Clinical Research recipient for his study, “Mechanical Power in the Operating Room: Is Driving Pressure the Answer After All?”

The Top Basic Science Award was given to Mitsukuni Yoshida, MD, PhD, a PGY2 resident and Academic Scholar Advancement Scholar at Washington University in St. Louis School of Medicine for his research on “NAD+ Augmentation and Senolytics as a Non-Opioid Analgesic for Treating Neuropathic Pain in Mice.”

Nicholas Fong, BA, at University of California San Francisco, was selected as the Top Scholars Abstract Award Recipient for his research on “Trends in Volatile Anesthetic Use and its Effect on Global Warming Potential: A Multicenter Observational Analysis between 2018 and 2023.”

The winners from each category will receive a $500 prize to recognize their innovative work in their specialty. Stay tuned for interviews with these impressive investigators in Issue 7 on Monday, March 31 of The Daily Dose to learn more about their research and aspirations for the future.

The Kosaka Best Abstract Awards are supported by the Japan Society for Clinical Anesthesia (JSCA) and the International Anesthesia Research Society (IARS). The founder of the JSCA, Dr. Futami Kosaka, started a cooperative relationship with IARS in 1990 and developed the foundation for today’s Kosaka Best Abstracts Session.