Representing the Canadian Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (CSAPS) as its President in 2025 is a tremendous honour. The accomplishment though brings reflection of the past.

CSAPS was founded in 1971 to provide a collegial organization for some of the most respected
plastic surgeons in the field of aesthetic plastic surgery. More than 50 years later, CSAPS continues to
bring together experts in aesthetic plastic surgery throughout Canada and internationally, with
the goal of innovating in the field of aesthetic plastic surgery and improving our patients’
experience.

Becoming a member several years ago was an accomplishment and brought a sense of pride as it is one of few medical societies that remains peer vetted. As a member, I have benefited from mentorship and collaboration with some of the most qualified and experienced aesthetic plastic surgeons practicing today in Canada and abroad.

The Annual meeting held every fall was always a meeting I looked forward to. The meetings brought together the best aesthetic plastic surgeons in Canada along with well-known respected international experts with the goal of teaching technical innovation, improving patient outcomes, and educating aesthetic plastic surgeons with the latest research. All of this accomplished in an intimate environment with a close-knit community. These remain the goals of CSAPS as a whole today.

After becoming a member of the Executive Board 5 years ago a topic of ongoing discussion was that despite the success of the annual meetings and as much as membership afforded, there had been a desire for the Society to do more. Membership had to have its privileges! As such, the Executive Board, past and present, have worked hard to provide our members with greater avenues to achieve the goals of the Society beyond our Annual Meeting. Memorandums of Understanding (MOU) with The Aesthetic Society are already in place and new MOUs with the Rhinoplasty Society and IMCAS America are in development, allowing our members to access educational opportunities previously unavailable.

Reflection of the past leads to ideas for the future. Looking forward, we are certain that other partnerships will continue to follow through our work in The Aesthetic Society Global Summit which brings together aesthetic societies throughout the world. Furthermore, we look to provide relevant non-surgical education through webinars with topics that are relevant to plastic surgeons in private practice and expand our pre-meeting educational experiences.

All these opportunities are only possible through the active partnerships with our industry sponsors and the ongoing addition of young or new members to our membership roster. Like many medical societies, improving membership numbers and ongoing positive relationships with industry are critical to maintaining relevance and viability. CSAPS has done an excellent job with this by adding 21 new members since 2023 and in 2024 introduced 7 members to a new Fellow/Resident membership category.  Through these efforts, our foundations are strong and the future of CSAPS shows significant promise.

I want to thank all the Past-Presidents with whom I worked for their years of dedication to CSAPS, for the wonderful organization of their respective meetings, and lastly for their mentorship and friendship. 

For surgeons, fellows, residents, and medical students: I look forward to seeing all of you in Toronto, Ontario at our 52nd Annual Meeting at The Omni King Edward Hotel on October 2, 2025-October 5, 2025. We have a great international line up of speakers: Dr. Tracy Pfeifer (USA), Dr. Louis Strock (USA), Dr. Marc Pacifico (UK), Dr. L. Mike Nayak (USA), Dr. Blair Peters (USA), and Dr. Alexis Delobaux (France).

For our prospective patients, customers, and supporters: I encourage you to work with our incredibly talented, highly vetted, and immensely involved members. We bring together the most successful and experienced plastic surgeons Canada has to offer, and our network of aesthetic surgeons is one you can rely on. 

Avi Islur, MD FRCSC
President, Canadian Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery – 2024/2025