European Respiratory Society International Congress 2020: highlights from best-abstract awardees

Abstract

During the 2020 European Respiratory Society (ERS) International Congress, the author of the best abstract (highest average score of abstract reviewers and only those who had not applied or were not eligible for a sponsored award) of every Assembly was awarded “a best-abstract certificate”. Best-abstract awardees were invited to write a short summary about their virtual Congress experience and their view on the evolving field of research in light of their respective ERS Assembly. The purpose of this article is to give the readers a quick overview of some of the Congress highlights and to give the stage to the promising best-abstract awardees as they are the future of the ERS.

Phenotypes and Lung Microbiota Signatures of Immunocompromised Patients with Pneumonia-Related Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome

“… 46 Similar results were reported, but no study has proved an association of gut bacteria and higher mortality or lower successful extubation rate. 43 On the contrary, we observed a better outcome in gut-bacteria enriched and inflammation-activated immunocompromised hosts (type α) than in the inflammation-inactive hosts (type γ), which indicates that an adequate host response is necessary for infection control. Thus, the enrichment of specified microbes might, to some extent, actually a result of the host immune responses.…”

“…First, loss of alpha diversity was observed in the type γ- A phenotype that had worse outcomes. In immunocompetent hosts with ARDS, 43 chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) or idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) 44 , 45 , the relation between dysbiosis and disease progression also exists. However, whether the dysbiosis is a result of the aggravation of diseases or the cause of the aggravation is not clear.…”