The theme of our meeting will be "Bridging Clinical Care and Basic Research". We will bring together practising clinicians and basic scientists to share the plenary lectures, symposia, meet-the-experts (both clinical and basic) and clinical interactive sessions. This will allow to "translate" new data from the basic sciences to the clinician, as well as to stimulate discussion of topics needing future research both at the bench and in the clinics. We expect that the new translational format of the meeting will bring new challenge and inspiration and will be appreciated. The Prague meeting will reflect the globalisation of paediatric endocrinology, and aim to promote further collaboration among the sister societies through joint symposia. We will organise joint symposia with the North-American Lawson Wilkins Pediatric Endocrine Society (LWPES), with Latin-American Society of Paediatric Endocrinology (SLEP), with colleagues from Japan (JSPE) but also with specialists in diabetes care (joint symposium ESPE-ISPAD and some others, giving a great attention to paediatric diabetes worldwide) and in paediatric urology (joint symposium ESPE-ESPU). One of the symposia might reflect also the ESPE African initiative to promote paediatric endocrine care in Africa. All these symposia will provide a unique occasion to share medical experience from around the world and across medical specialities, and help to elucidate the role of genetic heritage and different systems of health care delivery on disease phenotype and outcome.
The glass-walled Prague congress centre will give you a panoramic view of the city while attending the exhibitions, poster sessions and coffee breaks. However, we hope that meeting participants will also find some free time to stroll along the streets, lanes and riversides of medieval Prague and to appreciate its rich history and architecture. I look forward to seeing you at the 49th Annual ESPE Meeting in Prague!