Day: August 12, 2022

DOHA, Qatar, Aug. 12, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — To mark 100 days until the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, Qatar Tourism reveals how fans should spend 100 hours in Qatar while visiting for a match.

With more than one million visitors set to descend on Doha for the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, fans will be searching for activities to pack into their schedules whilst not attending matches. Qatar is perfectly placed to provide visitors with every type of experience they may be looking for. And with each fan’s ‘Hayya Card’ – required to enter Qatar – providing free public transport, including the new air-conditioned metro on match days, it will be quick and convenient to discover the peninsula’s best sites and things to do without breaking the bank.

Action and adventure – 24 hours (Day 1)

With more than 560 kilometres of coastline, the calm crystal waters of the Arabian Gulf make Qatar an ideal spot for water sports. From beginners to the experienced, adventurers should try stand-up paddle boarding around The Pearl-Qatar, go sunset kayaking through lush green mangroves, or have a thrilling jet ski ride exploring the stunning skyline. Then, a visit to the undulating sand dunes of Qatar’s desert is a must-do. Only an hour’s drive from Doha, one of the most popular tours is to experience the stunning Khor Al-Adaid or ‘Inland Sea’, recognised by UNESCO as a natural reserve with a beautiful landscape. The journey commonly includes dune bashing in a 4×4, swimming in the beautiful waters and, of course, a camel ride.

Back in the city, families looking to get their thrill-fix should visit Doha Quest, the latest of Qatar’s theme parks which opened last summer and offers an array of attractions for all ages. The highlights are the two Guinness World Record-holding rides – the ‘Tallest Indoor Rollercoaster’ and the ‘Tallest Indoor Drop Tower Ride’.

Art and culture – 48 hours (Day 2)

Culture, art and history are around every corner in Qatar. One of the most breath-taking public art installations is East-West/West-East by Richard Serra, which comprises four huge, 14-metre steel plates amongst the Ras Abrouq rock formations in Zekreet.

For those wishing to stay in the city, a number of iconic museums include the National Museum of Qatar (NMoQ), with its captivating design in the shape of desert rose crystals, the Museum of Islamic Art (MIA) designed by I. M. Pei, and the new 3-2-1 Qatar Olympic and Sports Museum – an ambitious project, billed as the world’s most innovative sports museum.

Later, stroll through Souq Waqif, a traditional market, best experienced in the evening when the alleyway shops and restaurants come to life and fill with locals, residents and curious visitors. Try the local cuisine, pick up a souvenir, or just enjoy the hustle and bustle.

The beach – 72 hours (Day 3)

After an action-packed 48 hours, it is time for some rest and relaxation. Whether you want to read a book, sunbathe on the sand, or have a refreshing dip in the sea, a day at the beach is a must. For uninterrupted sunset views, try Al Shamal on the north coast and Fuwairit Beach. Those after a family-friendly break can visit Hilton Salwa Beach Resort & Villas, which has 3.5 kilometres of powder-soft beachfront, Desert Falls Water & Adventure Park and recently launched a dolphin cruise. Another option is taking a short boat ride to the glamorous Banana Island Resort Doha by Anantara, which this summer reopened a surf pool and launched whale shark excursions.

Affordable exploration – 96 hours (Day 4)

Qatar offers something for everyone and for all budgets. The capital has a variety of eclectic city districts where it is fun to simply stroll around and discover all the hidden nooks, street art and culture. One of the most intriguing areas is the Pearl-Qatar, an expansive man-made island to the north of Doha that features Mediterranean-style yacht-lined marinas, boutique shops and colourful Instagrammable streets in the Qanat Quartier zone. For an area that blends more Arabian heritage with modern sustainable urban architecture, there is Msheireb Downtown Doha with its trendy cafes, art galleries and museums.

Visiting fans will be among the first to experience a range of new tourism developments set to launch just before the tournament begins. Exciting openings include Lusail Winter Wonderland on a sandy island, a state-of-the-art kite beach resort Fuwairit Kite Beach, the first “Entertainment Island” in Qatar Qetaifan Island North, and new public and private beach areas forming part of the West Bay North Beach Project.

It is also worth a wander through one of the glittering shopping malls. The largest are the Mall of Qatar and Doha Festival City, with theme parks and family-friendly eateries amongst many hundreds of household-name brands. On the luxury end is Galeries Lafayette with its outdoor air-conditioned walkways and the new Place Vendome, which has a grand outdoor canal, dancing fountain, and architecture inspired by the famous high-end shopping street in Paris, Rue de la Paix.

Finally, no itinerary in Qatar is complete without sampling food from across the mix of local and international restaurants. There is a raft of new options such as ADRIFT Anda by celebrity chef David Myers, and Lobito de Mar at the Marsa Malaz Kempinski hotel. Visitors will also find a huge variety of budget-friendly, delicious street food options, from tacos to shawarma. These are often all grouped together in a convenient zone such as the Lusail Night Market. For an authentic local snack, every fan must try Qatar’s acclaimed café restaurant Chapati & Karak, named after an Indian-inspired flatbread treat and sweet tea available together for only a couple of dollars.

Now for the match! – 100 hours

For those final four hours, it is time for a match. Qatar is the first ever Middle Eastern or Arab nation to host a FIFA World Cup and has made extensive plans to ensure every traveller is treated to the experience of a lifetime.

Chief Operating Officer of Qatar Tourism, Berthold Trenkel, said: “From thrilling water sports to shopping at the souqs, exploring mesmerising museums to soaking up the sun on the beaches, there is something for every type of traveller when they come to Qatar. We invite football fans from around the world to explore our plethora of attractions, all with the promise of a warm welcome and generous hospitality that is customary of Arabian culture.”

For more Qatar itineraries and holiday inspiration, visit: https://www.visitqatar.com/intl-en/plan-your-trip/itineraries-and-tours

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For media-related inquiries, please contact Qatar Tourism’s Press Office on:

+974 7774 7863 | pressoffice@visitqatar.qa 

About Qatar: 

Qatar is a peninsula surrounded by the Arabian Gulf in the heart of the Middle East, with 80% of the earth’s population within a six-hour flight. Ranked the safest country in the world in 2022 by Numbeo, Qatar welcomes all travellers, and guests from over 95 countries can enter visa-free. Qatar has an incredible variety of easily accessible tourist attractions, a plethora of fauna and flora including Whale Sharks and the majestic national animal the Arabian Oryx, and most experiences are a unique combination of cultural authenticity and modernity. From iconic museums to high-rise restaurants, from thrilling desert adventures to world-famous events including none other than the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, there is something for all types of travellers and budgets. Travellers set to transit through Qatar should turn one holiday into two with the world’s best value stopover packages, launched by Qatar Airways and Discover Qatar and supported by Qatar Tourism.

About Qatar Tourism: 

Qatar Tourism is the official government body responsible for the development and promotion of tourism in Qatar, facilitating the sector’s exponential growth. Qatar is a destination where people of the world come together to experience unique offerings in arts, culture, sports, and adventure, catering to family and business visitors, rooted in Service Excellence. Qatar Tourism seeks to boost the entire tourism value chain, grow local and international visitor demand, attract inward investment, and drive a multiplier effect across the domestic economy. The Qatar Tourism Strategy 2030 sets an ambitious target to attract over six million international visitors a year by 2030, making Qatar the fastest-growing destination in the Middle East.

Web: www.visitqatar.com

Twitter: @VisitQatar

Instagram: @VisitQatar

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• Qatar Tourism

August 12, 2022

• First-ever global consensus guidance published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology: Cardiovascular Interventions
• Use of IVUS recommended in all phases of lower extremity arterial and venous revascularization procedures to guide clinical decisions
• The results come ahead of the multi-society roundtable sponsored by SCAI on peripheral IVUS in September and the upcoming publications of a large-scale real-world health outcomes study presented at TCT last year

Amsterdam, the Netherlands – Royal Philips (NYSE: PHG, AEX: PHIA), a global leader in health technology, today announced an important milestone in the evolving standard of care for treating patients with peripheral vascular disease (PVD): the establishment of the first-ever global consensus for the appropriate use of intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) in lower extremity arterial and venous interventions.

Published in the August 2022 issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology: Cardiovascular Interventions as “Appropriate Use of Intravascular Ultrasound During Arterial and Venous Lower Extremity Interventions,” the new consensus document from 30 global vascular experts recommends routine use of IVUS as a preferred imaging modality in all phases in many peripheral vascular disease (PVD) procedures.

“The voting panelists considered a variety of clinical scenarios and based on their extensive experience, arrived at a strong consensus,” said lead author Eric A. Secemsky, MD, Interventional Cardiologist at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Assistant Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School, Boston USA. “They recommend routine use of IVUS as a preferred imaging modality in all phases for many peripheral interventions, both diagnostic and therapeutic, as it enables such exquisite visualization of the target vessel and lesion. Their recommendations, which withstood the rigor of peer review, can now be considered in the formulation of clinical guidelines for the diagnosis and treatment of peripheral vascular disease.”

PVD affects an estimated 200 million people worldwide, including approximately 40 to 45 million Americans, according to the American Heart Association [1]. The authors noted that minimally invasive approaches for PVD interventions are increasingly common, but traditional imaging techniques like angiography have limitations, including 2-dimensional projections of 3-dimensional vasculature, which can complicate diagnosis and intraprocedural optimization.

“As the global leader in providing vascular solutions to physicians and the patients they serve, we especially value the rigor and independence of this cross-specialty expert consensus,” said Heather Hudnut Page, General Manager and Business Leader for Peripheral Vascular Image Guided Therapy Devices at Philips. “It is exciting to know that this initiative has the potential to standardize the use of IVUS in peripheral interventions and guide clinical decisions to further improve the quality of care procedures for patients.”

Supported in part by research grants from Philips and Boston Scientific, the study was conducted and analyzed independently by Smith Center for Outcomes Research, gathering a wide spectrum of vascular expert opinion to ascertain the role of intravascular imaging in contemporary clinical practice.

Historical milestone
To achieve consensus, the broad, multi-disciplinary, global experts used a rigorous RAND/University of California, Los Angeles appropriateness method. The writing committee generated a systematic and comprehensive list of key clinical scenarios and the role of IVUS in decision-making pathways before voting by a separate committee of world experts in the field who were blind to each other’s responses. The initial results of their work were first shared at a special symposium during the 2021 Vascular Interventional Advances (VIVA) annual meeting. Subsequently, the Smith Center for Outcomes Research team has released a Systematic Literature Review (SLR) [2] summarizing and systematically appraising the number of observational cohort studies in the peripheral vascular space prior to the late-breaking RCT data from Australia further demonstrating benefits of IVUS-guidance in PVD patients. [3] Dr. Secemsky et al. also published a contemporary review in EuroIntervention [4] showing how IVUS imaging can standardize daily practice decisions through a data-driven approach. In the current JACC: Cardiovascular Interventions publication, the experts established clinical agreement to identify optimal use of IVUS and potential gaps to set a standard across medical subspecialties in order to drive positive outcomes for patients.

“Lack of clarity in the appropriate use of IVUS in peripheral vascular procedures has raised important questions in daily interventional practice,” said Sahil Parikh, MD, Director of Endovascular Services at Columbia University Irving Medical Center. “Establishing the appropriate use criteria recommendations is a historical milestone and foundational step towards improving the quality and safety of peripheral vascular procedures.”

Intravascular ultrasound (IVUS)
Philips is the global leader in IVUS solutions, which are part of the company’s comprehensive portfolio of systems, smart devices, software, and services for peripheral vascular disease aimed at helping clinicians decide, guide, treat, and confirm the right therapy for each patient during their procedure. Phased array IVUS is an important imaging tool used during venous and arterial interventions. It provides the fast plug-and-play usability and high-fidelity image resolution needed for pre-procedural planning, intra-procedural guidance, and post-procedural optimization of therapy for patients. Using an array of miniaturized ultrasound transducers mounted on the tip of a catheter, it captures real-time images of vascular disease inside vessels, enabling physicians to standardize and improve procedure care for their patients. Additional workflow optimization is enabled by integrated suite offerings such as Philips’ Azurion 7 with IntraSight platform.

[1] Benjamin EJ, Muntner P, Alonso A, Bittencourt MS, Callaway CW, Carson AP, Chamberlain AM, Chang AR, Cheng S, Das SR, Delling FN, Djousse L, Elkind MSV, Ferguson JF, Fornage M, Jordan LC, Khan SS, Kissela BM, Knutson KL, Kwan TW, Lackland DT, Lewis TT, Lichtman JH, Longenecker CT, Loop MS, Lutsey PL, Martin SS, Matsushita K, Moran AE, Mussolino ME, O’Flaherty M, Pandey A, Perak AM, Rosamond WD, Roth GA, Sampson UKA, Satou GM, Schroeder EB, Shah SH, Spartano NL, Stokes A, Tirschwell DL, Tsao CW, Turakhia MP, VanWagner LB, Wilkins JT, Wong SS, Virani SS., American Heart Association Council on Epidemiology and Prevention Statistics Committee and Stroke Statistics Subcommittee. Heart Disease and Stroke Statistics-2019 Update: A Report From the American Heart Association. Circulation. 2019 Mar 05;139(10):e56-e528. [PubMed]
[2] Natesan S, Mosarla RC, Parikh SA, Rosenfield K, Suomi J, Chalyan D, Jaff M, Secemsky EA. Intravascular ultrasound in peripheral venous and arterial interventions: A contemporary systematic review and grading of the quality of evidence. Vasc Med. 2022 Aug;27(4):392-400. doi: 10.1177/1358863X221092817. Epub 2022 May 12. PMID: 35546056.
[3] Allan RB, Puckridge PJ, Spark JI, Delaney CL. The Impact of Intravascular Ultrasound on Femoropopliteal Artery Endovascular Interventions: A Randomized Controlled Trial. JACC Cardiovasc Interv. 2022 Mar 14;15(5):536-546. doi: 10.1016/j.jcin.2022.01.001. PMID: 35272779.
[4] Secemsky EA, Parikh SA, Kohi M, Lichtenberg M, Meissner M, Varcoe R, Holden A, Jaff M, Chalyan D, Clair D, Hawkins B, Rosenfield K. Intravascular ultrasound guidance for lower extremity arterial and venous interventions. EuroIntervention. 2022 Apr 19:EIJ-D-21-00898. doi: 10.4244/EIJ-D-21-00898. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 35438078.

For further information, please contact:

Joost Maltha
Philips Global Press Office
Tel.: +31 6 10 55 8116
E-mail: joost.maltha@philips.com

Fabienne van der Feer
Philips Global Press Office
Tel.: +31 622 698 001
E-mail: fabienne.van.der.feer@philips.com

About Royal Philips

Royal Philips (NYSE: PHG, AEX: PHIA) is a leading health technology company focused on improving people’s health and well-being, and enabling better outcomes across the health continuum – from healthy living and prevention, to diagnosis, treatment and home care. Philips leverages advanced technology and deep clinical and consumer insights to deliver integrated solutions. Headquartered in the Netherlands, the company is a leader in diagnostic imaging, image-guided therapy, patient monitoring and health informatics, as well as in consumer health and home care. Philips generated 2021 sales of EUR 17.2 billion and employs approximately 79,000 employees with sales and services in more than 100 countries. News about Philips can be found at www.philips.com/newscenter.

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• Philips intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) – 2