Dear APAS members and arthroplasty colleagues:

With a vibrant organising team we are now preparing to welcome you all to the 17th annual scientific meeting of our society. In 2014, Chengdu was a great host city in the centre of China with a thriving metropolis and exquisite spicy food. In 2015 Delhi provided a sensational backdrop to an excellent academic program and scientific meeting. Now for 2016 we have chosen the beautiful island of Penang in Malaysia as the host of our annual meeting. Often referred to as The Pearl of the Orient, Penang will be an excellent location for a great scientific, culinary and cultural experience. The faculty as in previous years will combine both local and international experience to deliver a thought provoking and highly educational program that will inform and share knowledge of current trends in hip and knee arthroplasty.

Our ongoing vision in APAS will be to deliver meetings that introduce debate and reflect on current issues in joint replacement that we meet every day in our current practice but also share with you topics that you may need to broaden your scope of practice into the future. Our aim is to give you the tools technically, scientifically and academically to allow you to deliver better outcomes for your patients. This will include central themes to joint replacement but also recent advances and controversy as well as region specific topics as we all appreciate that our practice is influenced by the geopolitics and cultures of each country in the Asia Pacific region.

I am delighted to have Dato Dr Vasan Sinnadurai as the local convenor. Vasan has taken on the challenge of organising an excellent meeting for all delegates and we are very fortunate to have his wisdom and guiding hand to ensure that APAS 2016 will successfully provide value added education and warm fellowship for all its members and guests.

The meeting is scheduled for 25th to 28th August 2016 including an industry afternoon instructional session. I look forward to welcoming all our members to Penang for this conference and extend an open invitation to all arthroplasty surgeons to join our society and contribute to its ongoing academic endeavours.

Yours Sincerely

Rami Sorial
President, APAS