One of the great strengths of the ATS International Conference is that it’s multidisciplinary. Throughout ATS 2012, you can immerse yourself in a wealth of offerings within the Society’s three pillars—pulmonary, critical care and sleep medicine. Whether you choose topics in all three pillars or choose to focus on just one pillar, ATS 2012 offers the latest trends in treatment, leading to improved patient care. What follows is a selection of today’s programming in pulmonary, critical care and sleep medicine. Additional suggestions for Tuesday and Wednesday’s offerings will be included in tomorrow’s issue of the ATS Daily Bulletin.
Today
Pulmonary sessions
8:15 to 10:45 a.m.
B5 Idiopathic Interstitial Pneumonias/Pulmonary Fibrosis: Is ‘Idiopathic’ Truly ‘Idiopathic’?
Rooms 2002-2004, West Building (Level 2), Moscone Center
Often pulmonary interstitial disease is diagnosed as “idiopathic” without making use of available epidemiologic and investigative techniques to detect known or previously unrecognized environmental exposures of potential etiologic importance. In this symposium, experienced speakers will review the state of knowledge of criteria for diagnosing interstitial pulmonary pneumonias/fibrosis as idiopathic, highlighting apparent limitations by a review of epidemiologic, genetic and pathologic findings which suggest that some fraction of such disease diagnosed as idiopathic may have detectable environmental/occupational etiology, amenable to primary prevention or more effective therapy in the future. A panel will discuss suggestions for diagnostic practice and future research.
Educational Grant Support: Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Gilead Sciences Medical Affairs and InterMune, Inc.
8:15 to 10:45 a.m.
B6 Controversies in the Treatment of Childhood Asthma: A Pro-Con Debate
Rooms 304-306, South Building (Esplanade Level), Moscone Center
The symposium is a pro-con debate on three important, controversial areas in the treatment of childhood asthma: 1. Epidemiological data linking acetaminophen use to asthma has caused investigators to call for abandoning use and prospective trials. 2. Daily inhaled corticosteroids for treatment of childhood asthma is the international standard, but recent studies suggest some young children with mild asthma safely achieve comparable outcomes by using intermittent dosing. 3. Spirometry is important as an objective measure of obstructive airway disease and useful in the diagnosis of asthma. However, its utility in managing childhood asthma is questionable, since most asthmatic children exhibit normal spirometry. Participants will hear new findings about the potential risks for the development and worsening of asthma with the use of acetaminophen in young children; see how to integrate new treatment options in discussing the use of inhaled steroids for treatment of young children with mild persistent asthma; and be able to identify the appropriate use of spirometry in the management of children with chronic asthma.
2 to 4:30 p.m.
B89 Ubiquitination and Proteolysis in Respiratory Disease
Rooms 3006-3008, West Building (Level 3), Moscone Center
The aim of this session is to update the audience and provide a forum for discussion on key recent advances in our understanding of the role of protein ubiquitination in the pathogenesis of pulmonary diseases. The session will discuss novel findings addressing the role of ubiquitination in acute lung injury and the mechanisms of ubiquitin-associated muscle dysfunction in critically ill and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease patients. Furthermore, the potential implications of ubiquitination-induced autophagy and the role of extracellular proteasomes in pulmonary diseases will be discussed. Better understanding of these mechanisms may ultimately lead to novel therapeutic modalities by targeting elements of the ubiquitination pathway.
Critical care sessions
8:15 to 10:45 a.m.
B4 An Ounce of Prevention in Critical Care
Rooms 303-305-307, South Building (Esplanade Level), Moscone Center
Critical care medicine often concentrates on treatment of acute critical illness. However, prevention may be more important and beneficial to critically ill patients. In this session, participants will better understand the role of prevention in acute critical illness, which includes identification of individuals at high risk of acute organ failure; prevention of acute critical illness and complications of critical illness; and prevention of non-beneficial interventions in those at risk for excessive interventions. Participants will understand how to apply prevention to improve the quality and outcomes of their clinical practice and to identify research areas in the prevention of critical illness.
Educational Grant Support: Baxter Healthcare Corporation.
8:15 to 10:45 a.m.
B12 Improving Care for Severe Sepsis in Resource-Limited Settings
Rooms 3001-3003, West Building (Level 3), Moscone Center
Severe sepsis is not confined to regions of the world with ready access to intensive care unit beds. Topics in this symposium will explore issues in the capacity to care for and advances in delivery of care to severely septic patients in resource-limited settings. At the conclusion of this session, attendees will be able to explain the epidemiology of severe sepsis in resource-limited settings; become more involved in international activity and work with various groups in international settings; identify new findings related to medical management and quality improvement of severe sepsis in resource-limited settings; and apply new strategies to improve the care of severely ill patients in resource-limited settings.
2 to 4:30 p.m.
B84 Extracorporeal Gas Exchange: Respiratory Failure And Beyond
Rooms 303-305-307, South Building (Esplanade Level), Moscone Center
This session will provide an overview and update on the rationale and use of extracorporeal gas exchange (ECGE) techniques in critically ill patients, as well as review the state of current evidence, and ongoing clinical trials, for its efficacy in these patients. At the end of this session, critical care clinicians will have increased knowledge regarding the indications, target populations, and risk and benefits of ECGE in critically ill patients. Finally, the session will introduce novel ECGE technologies/indications as well as provide suggestions for future research in ECGE to elucidate its place in the ICU armamentarium.
Sleep sessions
8:15 to 10:45 a.m.
B7 Controversies in the Diagnosis and Management of Obstructive Sleep Apnea: Cutting-Edge Debates
Rooms 3006-3008, West Building (Level 3), Moscone Center
This symposium is designed to examine important controversies in the diagnosis and management of sleep-disordered breathing using a pro/con format. Experts in field of sleep science will share their expertise and review scientific evidence. They will discuss and debate new paradigms for the diagnosis of sleep apnea with home sleep studies; the relationship of cardiac disease and sleep apnea; oral appliances versus continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) for the treatment of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA); and the utility of CPAP adherence tracking systems in the management of OSA.