ECCMID 2020 cancelled

A decision was taken on the 18th of March, 2020 that the 30th ECCMID will be fully cancelled, including the recently planned online version of it. This decision was taken with the understanding that all available resources will need to be focussed on patient care in view of the increasing threat of the COVID-19 pandemic.

We hope that you will join us in 2021 for ECCMID in Vienna.

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ECCMID 2020 – Abstracts to be published

EITaF Mailing list: Subscribe to receive COVID-19 outbreak news in your inbox!

Did you know that you can now receive email alerts every time that a new piece of EITaF Outbreak News is published – EITaF is the official ESCMID source for news about the current COVID-19 outbreak.

If you log in to your ESCMID account using your ESCMID login credentials and choose the link ‘Newsletter and Mailing List’ in the right-hand column, You can opt-in to receiving EITaF news alerts.

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EMA gives advice on the use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatories for COVID-19

EMA is aware of reports, especially on social media, which raise questions about whether non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medicines (NSAIDs) such as ibuprofen could worsen coronavirus disease (COVID-19).

There is currently no scientific evidence establishing a link between ibuprofen and worsening of COVID‑19. EMA is monitoring the situation closely and will review any new information that becomes available on this issue in the context of the pandemic.

In May 2019, EMA’s safety committee (PRAC) started a review of the non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medicines ibuprofen and ketoprofen​​​​​​ following a survey by the French National Agency for Medicines and Health Products Safety (ANSM) which suggested that infection due to chickenpox (varicella) and some bacterial infections could be made worse by these medicines. The product information of many NSAIDs already contains warnings that their anti-inflammatory effects may hide the symptoms of a worsening infection. The PRAC is reviewing all available data to see if any additional measure is required.

In line with EU national treatment guidelines, patients and healthcare professionals can continue using NSAIDs (like ibuprofen) as per the approved product information. Current advice includes that these medicines are used at the lowest effective dose for the shortest possible period.

Further to the ongoing PRAC safety review on ibuprofen and ketoprofen, EMA highlights the need for epidemiological studies to be conducted in a timely manner to provide adequate evidence on any effect of NSAIDs on disease prognosis for COVID-19. The Agency is reaching out to its stakeholders and is ready to actively support such studies, which could be useful in guiding any future treatment recommendations.

EMA will provide further information as necessary and once the PRAC review is concluded.

More information are available on the EMA Website.

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ESCMID Study Group Elections: extended timeline

Considering the current difficult situation for our members, the ESCMID Executive Committee has decided to extend the timeline for the election of the ESCMID Study Group Executive Committees. At the same time, they have decided to hold the Study Group Annual meetings only after the closure of the election process. Study Groups meeting will take place online; those Study Groups that had elections in 2019 can organize their meeting at any time (contact science@escmid.org).

The election procedure consists of 1) a nomination phase in which members can propose themselves as candidate, nominate other members or support nominations. Each nominee must be supported by two other members; 2) an election phase in which the members are invited to vote. The new timeline is the following:

• Nominations: close Monday, 20 April 2020
• Approval of the list of nominees: Tuesday, 21 April 2020 – Monday, 27 April 2020
• Elections: Wednesday, 29 April 2020 – Monday, 11 May 2020
• Approval of elected members: Tuesday, 12 May 2020 – Monday, 18 May 2020
• Communication of the results: by Friday, 22 May 2020
• The new Executive Committee takes office at the online Study Group annual meeting (June 2020).

To participate in the election process, log in to my.escmid.org with your ESCMID credentials and click on the “Study Group Elections” icon. Only members with a valid ESCMID membership can take part in the election process. Please be sure to renew immediately your ESCMID membership, should it expire before 11 May 2020.

The Study Groups that have opened or will soon open elections are: ESGS, EFISG, EPASG, ESGAP, ESGBOR, ESGCIP, ESGCP, ESGFOR, ESGHAMI, ESGIB, ESGITM, ESGLI, ESGPHM, ESGREV, EVASG, ESGARS, ESGMYC, EFWISG, ESGIE, ESGCD, ESGMD (one member).

For any question, contact science@escmid.org

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GARDP Webinar – Probability of target attainment analyses for dose selection in antimicrobial drug development

Don’t miss the next GARDP live webinar, where Shampa Das from the Centre of Excellence in Infectious Diseases Research, University of Liverpool, will address the  probability of target attainment analyses for dose selection in antimicrobial drug development.

The webinar will take place on Thursday, 26 March at 17:00 CET.

Register for this webinar on the GARDP website.

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EMA communication: Highlights of patient, consumer, and healthcare professional activities in 2019

EMA is happy to share the Highlights of patient, consumer, and healthcare professional activities in 2019 with all the stakeholders.

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CMI highlight: Association of meteorological factors and atmospheric particulate matter with the incidence of pneumonia: an ecological study

Association between weather and pneumonia has been demonstrated. Low temperature, high diurnal temperature range (DTR), high day-to-day temperature change, and low humidity are among the most well-described weather conditions associated with pneumonia. More recently, air pollutants, notably atmospheric particulate matters (PMs), have been suggested as an important factor increasing the risk of respiratory infections. The pattern of association and effect size differed based on methodologies used, geospatial characteristics, and climate. Moreover, methodologies shared by many studies had limited capacity to take various meteorological factors into final models.

Huh et al. used a stepwise approach to identify principal factors associated with pneumonia and utilized a novel statistical model to estimate the effect size and lag time to elucidate the complex association between weather and pneumonia incidence. In their analysis of nationwide data of weekly pneumonia incidence and meteorological observations, DTR, humidity, and PM were closely associated with weekly pneumonia incidence among meteorological factors/air pollutants. The authors believe the study adds a meaningful evidence by demonstrating that meteorological factors/air pollutants are indeed associated with the incidence of pneumonia. While the results might not affect clinical practice directly, it might serve as another call for awareness and action to physicians and researchers responsible for improving public health.

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