BRUSSELS, Belgium, December 12 /PRNewswire/ --

The Crossroads Institute for medical education today announced it will develop new educational programs for healthcare professionals focused on improving the treatment of women with cardiovascular disease and the prevention of amputation. The announcement was made by the newly formed committee of the Crossroads Educational Research Program (CERP) at the Crossroads Institute in Brussels, Belgium, which is focused on providing the latest in medical education to advance the treatment of patients with cardiac and vascular disease and is supported by an educational grant from Abbott Vascular.

The CERP will bring together Crossroads Institute teaching faculty members, worldwide cardiovascular and vascular experts and for the first time, Europe's leading educational specialists, to explore and respond to the most important unmet needs in medical education through the development of specialist courses.

The committee has identified 'Women and Cardiovascular Treatment' as an area of immediate medical education focus due to the staggering number of women who die from cardiovascular disease (CAD) each year. CAD is the number one cause of mortality amongst women, killing more women annually than all types of cancers, HIV/AIDS malaria and tuberculosis combined.(1) The committee has also identified 'Prevention of Amputation' as its second area of medical education focus, citing that an estimated 70 per cent of all lower extremity amputations are related to diabetes -- many of which could be prevented if there were increased awareness and education about the disease state among healthcare professionals.(2)

The outcomes of the first committee meeting will be two 5-point action plans for the development of new courses at the Crossroads Institute that combine the latest cardiac and vascular therapy techniques with state-of-the-art technology and leading educational methodologies.

Medical education programs at the Crossroads Institute are designed to facilitate peer-to-peer exchange and to help healthcare professionals keep abreast of current developments in the fast moving and dynamic landscape of cardiac and vascular care, fundamental for improving patient outcomes.

Full and detailed outlines of the new Crossroads Institute courses on women and cardiovascular disease treatment and the prevention of amputation are expected in May 2008 and the committee anticipates meeting twice a year to review other areas of unmet medical education need.

"Since the Crossroads Institute launched in 2000, we have prided ourselves on offering real-world educational experiences for healthcare professionals, by combining innovative therapy techniques, technology and peer-to-peer experience exchange," said Professor Jean Marco, Medical Education Program Director, Cardiac Programs at the Crossroads Institute and Professor of Cardiology at the Centre Cardio-thoracique de Monaco. "The new Crossroads Educational Research Program allows us to expand the creation of gold standard medical education programs designed to enable healthcare professionals to provide the best possible care to their patients."

Dr Luc Stockx, Medical Education Program Director, Endovascular Programs at the Crossroads Institute and Interventional Radiologist at Ziekenhuis Oost Limburg added, "By focusing on areas of unmet need in medical education and the benefits of leading education theories, we increase the likelihood that Crossroads Institute medical education programs can ultimately help to improve patient care across Europe."

About the Crossroads Institute

Providing leadership in interventional medical education since 2000, the Crossroads Institute was the first medical learning institute of its kind established in the world to advance the open exchange of information about cardiac and vascular care in order to help healthcare professionals improve the treatment of cardiac and vascular disease. The Crossroads Institute is a world class medical education facility funded by Abbott and headquartered in Brussels, Belgium with medical education facilities in Tokyo, Japan and Johannesburg, South Africa. For more information about The Crossroads Institute, phone +32-2-714-14-65 or visit http://www.crossroads-institute.com

About Abbott Vascular

Abbott Vascular, a division of Abbott, is one of the world's leading vascular care businesses. Abbott Vascular is uniquely focused on advancing the treatment of vascular disease and improving patient care by combining the latest medical device innovations with world-class pharmaceuticals, investing in research and development, and advancing medicine through training and education. Headquartered in Northern California, Abbott Vascular offers a comprehensive portfolio of vessel closure, endovascular and coronary products that are recognized internationally for their safety and effectiveness in treating patients with vascular disease.

About Abbott

Abbott (NYSE: ABT) is a global, broad-based health care company devoted to the discovery, development, manufacture and marketing of pharmaceuticals and medical products, including nutritionals, devices and diagnostics. The company employs 65,000 people and markets its products in more than 130 countries.

Abbott's news releases and other information are available on the company's Web site at http://www.abbott.com

References (1) World Heart Federation. Go Red For Women. Available at: http://www.world-heart-federation.org/what-we-do/go-red-for-women/ (2) World Diabetes Day 2005. Diabetes and Foot Care: Put Feet First Prevent Amputations. Available at: www.worlddiabetesday.org/assets/documents/0000/0225/WDD05_leaflet_EN.pdf Web site: http://www.abbott.com http://www.crossroads-institute.com

Karin Bauer Aranaz, +1-650-868-2999, karin.baueraranaz@av.abbott.com, for the Crossroads Institute