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Innovation Video Competition
After a few years hiatus, the CTSNet Innovation Award Video Competition is back and seeks to inspire and celebrate innovative thinking in cardiothoracic surgery. Calling all CT surgery trailblazers who have masterminded innovative solutions to current CT surgical challenges, which may include instruments, techniques, approaches, or management protocols! All cardiothoracic surgery team members and researchers are eligible to enter and win the $1,000 first-place prize.

Submissions are now open!
Entries for the 3rd Annual CTSNet Innovation Award Video Competition will be accepted between May 8–August 31, 2023.
Be sure to select "Other" under submission type and enter "Innovation Competition" in the description.
For more information on the competition and how to enter, see the sections below:
- Eligibility
- Competition Guidelines
- Benefits and Prizes
- Judging Criteria
- Submission Instructions
- Previous Years' Competitions
Eligibility
The competition is open to all cardiothoracic surgery team members and researchers.
Competition Guidelines
- Only one submission per entrant will be accepted.
- Submitted videos must:
- be no longer than 10 minutes;
- address an existing gap in current cardiothoracic surgical approaches with solutions that are demonstrated in video format;
- address both the problem as well as an innovative surgical solution;
- demonstrate an innovative solution that adheres to all established guidelines for patient safety.
- Videos may or may not demonstrate a clinical case; surgical solutions at preclinical and therapeutic stages of development will also be considered.
- To meet the CTSNet first authorship requirement, the entrant must have created and/or edited the videos while also serving as the video's narrator.
- The submission must adhere to CTSNet's standard submission guidelines.
Benefits and Prizes
1st place winner:
- $1,000 monetary prize
- Publication of your video on CTSNet.org
- Altmetric badging for citation and CV purposes
- Featured in announcement of competition results on CTSNet.org, CTSNet social media channels, and in the Pulse e-newsletter
- Exclusive video interview about your winning video published on CTSNet.org
2nd and 3rd place awards:
- Publication of your video on CTSNet.org
- Altmetric badging for citation and CV purposes
- Featured in announcement of competition results on CTSNet.org, CTSNet social media channels, and in the Pulse e-newsletter
All qualifying entries:
- Publication of video on CTSNet.org
- Altmetric badging for citation and CV purposes
Judging Criteria
To evaluate the quality of video submissions, a panel of distinguished cardiothoracic professionals and CTSNet editors will serve as judges.
Videos will be judged on the following criteria:
- Prevalence and/or severity of the challenge(s) they address
- Originality and inventiveness of the solution
- Practicality and ease of implementation
- Benefit to patient care
- Quality of the video and associated submission
Submission Instructions
Applicants must use the CTSNet content submission form to enter videos into the competition. Under submission type, "Other" must be selected, followed by the words "Innovation Award Video Competition" entered into the description. This ensures the submission is considered for the competition.
Previous Years' Competitions
Take a look at past competition winners:
2nd Annual CTSNet Innovation Award Video Competition (2020)
- First Place: “Subxiphoid Non-intubated Thymectomy With Pericardial Resection” by Giacomo Argento, Giuseppe Aresu
- Second Place: “VATS Left S8 Lung Segmentectomy With Radiological Coil and ICG” by Ilies Bouabdallah
- Third Place: “Balloon-Expandable Transcatheter Mitral Valve Replacement Through Minimally Invasive Approach in Big MAC” by Germán Alberto Fortunato, Guillermo I. Stöger, Alberto Domenech, Ricardo Andr Posatini, Ricardo Gustavo Marenchino, Vadim Kotowicz
1st Annual CTSNet Innovation Award Video Competition (2019)
- First Place: “Arterial Switch Operation and Mee Procedure” by Roosevelt Bryant, Alan O'Donnell
- Second Place: “Transapical Off-Pump Mitral Valve Repair With NeoChord DS1000 Device” by Paulo Neves, Luis Vouge
- Third Place: “Central Patch Technique for Repair of Complete Atrioventricular Septal Defects” by William Douglas