Report on 3rd ESID Prague Spring Meeting
May 10-11, 2004, Prague
Institute of Immunology, 2nd Medical School, Charles University, Prague
On May 10 and 11, 2004, the third ESID Prague Spring meeting was held in the University Hospital Motol, Prague. This year 35 participants from 10 countries, namely Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Lithuania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Romania, Russia and USA, attended and actively participated in the event. The mean age of participants was 36 years (with the range from 26 to 68), thus demonstrating the continuous exchange of generations among immunologists mainly in Eastern European countries.
Third ESID Prague Spring Meeting was part of “J project”, coordinated activity of Eastern European countries represented by the chain of successive meetings in these countries with the aim to increase the information about PID in Eastern European Region.
The main task of Prague ESID meeting is traditionally represented by the attempt to facilitate the exchange of information on PID between Western and Eastern Europe. This task was accomplished this year by an excellent attendance from these formerly separated, now mostly unified regions. Invited participating speakers for 2004 were Helen Chapel, Hans Ochs, Anna Villa and Bodo Grimbacher.
Topics for the first day were targeted mainly at the registries of PID in the countries of participants. The topic was opened by the presentation of European PID registry by Bodo Griembacher. The program continued with the introduction of new cluster of diseases on the border between primary immunodeficencies and autoimmune disorders, namely the group IPEX-APECED-ALPS, presented by Hans Ochs. News on SCID and the disorders of innate immunity were on the program second day of the meeting. Large part of the program was devoted to the case reports. Unusual and interesting cases were the most valued among all participants. This year meeting introduced new section concerning the patients involvement in PID area.
The meeting offered complementary activities, composed from the information about the hosting facility, 2nd Medical School and Charles University and University Hospital Motol in Prague and further from rich cultural and social program. The meeting was followed by the bike trip that further enriched the basic motto of Prague Spring Meetings – to facilitate the spread of the information of PID among immunologists. Eight participants took part in the bike trip that started in Prague and finished in Brno, in the laboratory specializing in the molecular diagnosis of PID.
The meeting was supported by EURO-PID-NAS QLRT-2001-02742 FP5 EU project. Ten travel grants were provided for East Europe participants. The event was further supported by Immunotech, Baxter and University Hospital in Motol.
This year meeting confirmed still growing scientific quality of the conference and the usefulness of these educational activities. The plans for the next year has been already initiated.
Anna Sediva, June 2004
