These symposia last for one or two hours, convene renowned speakers from all over the world and cover a wide range of topics in the fields of clinical microbiology, infectious diseases and infection control. A number of symposia are arranged in cooperation with ESCMID’s study groups, while others are jointly organized with partnering societies or organizations. Some of the symposia give an overview over recent developments and research results, while others review the literature or are presented as pro-con debates. A list of confirmed speakers can be found here.

The preliminary session and talk titles are as follows:

Novel techniques for targeted imaging of bacterial and fungal infection
Targeted imaging of bacterial infections
Targeted imaging of invasive aspergillosis

Forever young by manipulating the microbiota - mission possible?
Observations from the ELDERMET cohort
Frailty and the gut
Co-organized with ESGIE

Plasmid ecology and persistence
Plasmid evolution and ecology
How plasmids persist

Revision of clinical breakpoints and implications for clinical practice
Aminoglycosides
Polymyxins
Co-organized with EUCAST, EPASG

Vaccine hesitancy impacts individual and public health
Vaccine hesitancy - what, where, why?
Methods to study serious safety signals - example of HPV-vaccinations in Denmark

Top papers in virology
Basic science
Diagnostic
Clinical
Co-organized with ESGVH

Measles in Europe - is it really under control?
Recent epidemiology and outbreaks in Europe
What does it take to eradicate?
Co-organized with EVASG, ECDC

Meningoccocal disease - developments and challenges in the 'new vaccination' era
Epidemiology of invasive meningococcal disease
Impact and safety management in meningococcal B vaccination

Top papers in neglected tropical diseases
Diagnosis
Clinical
Epidemiology

Resistance dynamics between the human and the veterinary sector
Connecting resistance data in the animal and human sector
Why do we need antimicrobial stewardship in veterinary medicine?
Co-organized with EUCIC, ESGVM, ESGAP

Surgical site infection prevention worldwide
The basis for the new WHO global guideline - systematic assessment of the risks and the burden of SSI around the world
Translating recommendations into practice – effective implementation strategies and tools across settings with different levels of resources
Co-organized with WHO, EUCIC

Top papers in mycology
Diagnostics/laboratory
Clinical/bedside/treatment
Co-organized with EFISG

Obligatory vaccination of health-care workers (PRO/CON debate)
Pros
Cons
Co-organized with EVASG, World Association for Infectious Diseases and Immunological Disorders (WAidid)

Community acquired pneumonia - update on diagnosis and treatment
Improving the aetiologic diagnosis of CAP
Pneumonia treatment 2017

What is hot in parasitology?
Cryptosporidium
Neurocysticercosis - an update
Babesiosis in animals and humans
Strongyloides hyperinfection

Addressing the biofilm in bone and joint infection and "aseptic" disease
Biofilms and their role in culture-negative infections
Physiological adaptation in biofilms - the Achilles' heel of attached cells?
Rapid diagnosis and prolonged antimicrobial therapy for the elimination of biofilm infections
Hardware loosening, non unions, and treatment in orthopaedic infections - addressing the biofilm issue
Co-organized with ESGB, ESGIAI

Clinician, microbiologist and pathologist - joining efforts in diagnosis
Infectious sudden cardiac death in children and adolescents
Cause of death in the ICU - autopsy findings
Post-travel death
Emerging pathogen death - forensic diagnosis
Co-organized with ESGFOR, ESGCIP, European Society of Pathology (ESP)

The cutting edge in TB
Targeting tuberculosis - differences between high and low-burden countries
Vaccines in tuberculosis
Diabetes and tuberculosis
Host-directed therapies in tuberculosis

Cure for viral diseases
Achieved HCV cure and what is thereafter?
What drugs are coming for HBV cure?
Eradicating HIV focussing on the viral reservoir
Potential for HIV cure by Stem Cell Transplantation; the EpiStem project
Co-organized with ESGVH

Endocarditis update
Endocarditis prophylaxis 2017
Fungal endocarditis
Update on HACEK endocarditis
Pros and cons of different combination therapies for enterococcal endocarditis
Co-organized with ESGBIS

Eulogy of the gut anaerobiome - running out of oxygen
Use of mass spectometry for the identification of anaerobic bacteria, change anaerobic bacteriology?
Multi-drug resistance among anaerobes
Gut anaerobes in health and disease
Mobile genetic elements in anaerobes
Co-organized with ESGAI

Advancements in microbiota-based therapeutics in prevention and treatment of infectious diseases
Mechanisms by which bacteria interact and compete with one another
Basic concepts in colonization resistance mechanisms
Microbiome-based therapeutics to eliminate intestinal colonization by multidrug-resistant bacteria
Microbiome-based therapeutics for preventing recurrent Clostridium difficile infections

Coagulase-negative staphylococci (CoNS) - true pathogens!
S. epidermidis - insights in pathogenesis from genomics
Coagulase-negative staphylococci as sources for dissemination of resistance determinants
S. capitis - a world-wide multidrug-resistant clone responsible for sepsis in neonatal intensive care units
S. lugdunensis - an overlooked pathogen
Co-organized with ESGS, ESGVM

Interactions of the virome in the respiratory tract
Human respiratory virome
Innate and adaptive immune responses
The burden of respiratory viral disease in young and old - from acute to chronic
Viral-bacterial interactions in the respiratory tract
Co-organized with EVASG, TAE

Migrant health 2.0
Health and social intervention for vulnerable migrants in Europe
Screening and healthcare organization in refugee camp settings - lessons for the future
More or less screening for infectious diseases in new and settled migrants?
Priorities in vaccination programmes for migrants
Co-organized with ESGITM

HIV - culprit or facilitator?
HIV and the CNS - an update
HIV and the gut
Prevention and management of human papillomavirus (HPV)-related tumours in HIV-positive individuals
Non-HPV malignancies in HIV patients

How medical overuse drives healthcare costs and antimicrobial resistance
How overuse of antimicrobials drives antimicrobial resistance
How overuse of testing leads to overtreatment of infectious diseases
Prevention of infectious disease through limiting overuse of devices
Overview of medical overuse and how 'choosing wisely' may improve infectious disease outcomes

Transmission of plasmid-borne resistance - a new paradigm for infection control?
The role of conjugative plasmids in the nosocomial spread of antimicrobial resistance in Gram-negatives - what is the evidence?
Horizontal transfer of antimicrobial resistance in patients and the environment
Is there enough evidence from research on plasmid-encoded antimicrobial resistance to change infection control guidelines?
In silico detection and typing of plasmids using whole-genome sequence data - applications in infection control

What is new in MDR-TB?
What is new in the clinical management of MDR-TB?
MDR-TB and migration
Prevention of MDR-TB in children and adults
What is new in drug resistance testing for MDR-TB?

Year in Infection Control

Invasive candidiasis in 2017
Host susceptibility to Candida infections
Trends in Candida infection epidemiology
Non-culture based diagnostics
When and where is antifungal treatment deescalation possible and safe?

Infections in cancer patients
Current epidemiology of MDR/XDR pathogen-related infections in febrile neutropenic cancer patients
Antibacterial stewardship in febrile neutropenia - low-resistance vs high-resistance settings
New cancer treatments - what the ID specialist needs to know
What can we learn from the EORTC and what can we do together?
Co-organized with European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC), International Immunocompromised Host Society (ICHS)

Think in networks - modern resistance prevention and control
Systemic network analysis and its applications to infectious diseases
Eyes for the invisible - the regional healthcare networks
Epidemiology of the spread of antimicrobial resistance within healthcare clusters
Co-creative regional networks on antimicrobial resistance - a real-life example

Worldwide outbreak linked to heater-cooler units in cardiac surgery
Epidemiology of heater-cooler-linked outbreaks
Clinical management of Mycobacterium chimaera infection
Typing Mycobacterium chimaera isolates from patients and heater-cooler units
Heater-cooler units as a source of other pathogens

Polymyxin resistance - current situation and lessons for optimized use
Epidemiology of colistin resistance
Mechanisms of colistin resistance
Colistin use in animals - can it be banned?
Colistin or polymyxin B for human medicine?
Co-organized with ESGARS

The in vitro susceptibility testing to antifungals - a multidisciplinary approach
Resistance mechanisms to antifungals
EUCAST or commercial methods - which method to use?
New approaches for susceptibility testing
Are the susceptibility data useful for the clinician?

Reporting antibiogram data
Selective reporting of antibiogram results
Reporting MICs or clinical categories?
Direct reporting of resistance mechanisms
Clinical assessment of susceptibility data?
Co-organized with ESGARS

Best infection control practices in a culturally diverse world
Core elements for successfully implementing infection control – what do I have to ask my hospital director?
Control of multi-resistant Gram-negative bacteria in low- and middle-income countries – high-impact interventions without much resources?
Global hand hygiene promotion – how to reach the top at low cost?
Diagnostic microbiology challenges in infection control across the world
Co-organized with International Consortium for Prevention & Infection Control (ICPIC), EUCIC

Year in Infectious Diseases

Year in Clinical Microbiology

Is aspergillosis really an opportunistic infection?
Aspergillosis - the role of the host
Aspergillosis - the role of the fungus
Azole resistance in Aspergillus - clinical impact in haematological patients
Non-neutropenic patients and aspergillosis

Metagenomics in the diagnostic laboratory
Metagenomic analysis of clinical isolates
Deep sequencing for resistome analysis
Application of metagenomics for bloodstream infections
Metagenomics for respiratory tract infections