A snapshot of the Congress of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (ECCMID) in Copenhagen, Denmark
In April 2023, CIDG Clinical Research Associate Dr Rebecca Kuehn attended the 33rd European Congress of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (ECCMID) in Copenhagen, Denmark. Here she reports on the event.
The 33rd ECCMID conference was an absolutely jam-packed 4-day forum concerning all things on diagnosis, treatment and prevention of infection-related diseases, organised by the European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (ESCMID). This is the event to attend to learn about the latest research findings in the fields of medical microbiology and infectious diseases for academia, clinical settings and industry – attended by around 10,000 people!
Day 1 kicked off with a fantastic session on cystic echinococcosis, a neglected zoonosis prioritized by the WHO 2021-2030 roadmap of neglected infectious diseases, and a condition which the CIDG has undertaken an evidence synthesis to inform the latest WHO treatment guidelines. This session gave an excellent overview of recent research developments with a focus on diagnostics, with presentations from researchers from Italy, France, Germany, and the UK.
In light of involvement in recent reviews on mpox therapeutics and infection prevention control measures, it was valuable to attend sessions on mpox, including presentations on clinical aspects of the disease, outbreak lessons learnt from a public health perspective, and areas of ongoing research.
Whilst there were too many interesting sessions to name, further standout forums included malaria challenges in low- and middle-income countries and multiple sessions covering COVID-19 including forums concerning post-Covid-19 condition (or “long Covid”) and peculiarities of disease in children.
It was also wonderful to have the opportunity to attend sessions on conditions of personal interest and to fuel thought for potential future reviews such as neglected tropical skin diseases, leishmaniasis and schistosomiasis, including perspectives on screening programmes and mass drug administration programmes.
A definite highlight was to finally meet in person co-authors and READ-It Partners from various projects in the past year, including Dr Priscilla Rupali from CMC Vellore and Dr Francesca Tamarozzi, a co-author on a systematic review in progress on cystic echinococcosis; it is always nicer to meet in person than over Zoom!
Overall, the congress provided an unrivalled opportunity to engage with the latest research in infectious diseases, to meet and discuss current and future projects with collaborators and gain inspiration for future projects for the CIDG…and to eat delicious Danish pastries!
Rebecca Kuehn is supported by the Research, Evidence and Development Initiative (READ-It) project. READ-It (project number 300342-104) is funded by UK aid from the UK government; however, the views expressed do not necessarily reflect the UK government’s official policies.