Nina Lešnik
This year, the European Society for Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (ESCMID) brought together more than 15,000 experts at the 33rd European Congress of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (ECCMID) in Copenhagen, Denmark.
While mortality from infectious diseases was decreasing 40 years ago, mortality began to rise again in the 1980s. Since then, the HIV epidemic has taken its toll, antimicrobial resistance continues to grow steadily, and diseases such as polio, Ebola, Zika and, most recently, mpox have re-emerged. In addition, the COVID-19 pandemic has changed the world and brought about a shift in public awareness and perception of infectious diseases as a threat. This gave ESCMID a great opportunity to address this issue. The organization plays a leading role in guiding the practice, education and training of clinical microbiology and infectious disease specialists around the world, and in preparing for and rapidly responding to emerging infections. It is also necessary to mention the great encouragement of the organization to respond to antimicrobial resistance.
"To lead the fight against infections, we must think and act globally", is the main guide of ESCMID.
Due to globalization, antimicrobial resistance and emerging infections can spread worldwide. Although ESCMID is a European organization, their mission is to be a diverse and inclusive society.
ECCMID 2023 was based on three key contents: scientific content, education and professional development, and experience and engagement. This year’s program was dominated by topics such as viral/bacterial infections and diseases, new antibacterial agents, with COVID-19 taking a step back. In total, more than 6,000 study abstracts were submitted, with the top categories covering a range of topics, including severe sepsis, bacteremia and endocarditis, hospital epidemiology, and molecular diagnostics. The congress brought together 725 lecturers from 67 different countries.
ECCMID 2023 was also an excellent opportunity to discover the innovations of bioMérieux. With modern technologies and innovative approaches to the diagnosis of infectious diseases, bioMérieux is committed to contributing to the reduction of mortality and the prevention of the development of antimicrobial resistance. In this regard, it has been working as a gold partner and sponsor of the European Society for Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases for many years. As a representative of bioMérieux diagnostics on the Slovenian market, we are also extremely proud of our contribution to this urgent mission.
