Irish Thoracic Society meeting welcomes national and international experts

The 2024 Irish Thoracic Society (ITS) Annual Scientific Meeting in Derry welcomed respiratory experts from both sides of the Irish border, and beyond, to a diverse programme of lectures, evidence-based practice updates, and professional collaboration. The three-day event began with specialist registrar training updates in nasal disease, inducible laryngeal obstruction, sleep, and asthma, followed by a case study forum on day one.

Several distinguished national and international specialists delivered guest lectures during the second and third days of the conference, which also boasted a range of parallel poster presentations, oral sessions, and clinical discussions. Specialist affiliate forums that also took place during the event included meetings of the Respiratory Nurses Association of Ireland, the Irish Institute of Clinical Measurement Physiology, the Pleural Group, and a paediatric forum.

Among myriad highlights, Dr Kerri Johannson, Associate Professor, Departments of Medicine and Community Health Sciences, and member of the Snyder Institute for Chronic Diseases, University of Calgary, Canada, delivered a comprehensive clinical update on hypersensitivity pneumonitis; Prof Cecilia O’Kane, Professor of Respiratory Medicine at Queen’s University, Belfast, discussed the latest advances in non-TB mycobacteria; and Prof Gisli Jenkins, Consultant Respiratory Physician, Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust, London, UK, explored the role of biomarkers in diagnosing and managing interstitial lung disease.