The 4th World Congress for Endoscopic Surgery of the Brain, Skull Base and Spine was held April 28-30 at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center in Pittsburgh.

The event -- presenting the latest in scientific work relating to endoscopic surgery -- featured an international faculty of experts in neurosurgery, otolaryngology, plastic surgery and ophthalmology covering a wide variety of intracranial and spinal topics.

The congress was sponsored by the University of Pittsburgh’s School of Medicine, Department of Neurological Surgery, and Department of Otolaryngology and the UPMC Center for Continuing Education in the Health Sciences.

Honored guests for this year's event included Alan R. Cohen, MD, surgeon-in-chief and chief of pediatric neurological surgery at Case Western Reserve University; Richard G. Fessler, MD, PhD, professor of neurosurgery at Northwestern University; and Albert L. Rhoton, Jr, MD, Keene Family Professor at the University of Florida.

The inaugural congress was first held in Pittsburgh in the fall of 2005. Paris, France was the venue in 2007 and Sao Paulo, Brazil in 2008.