Welcome to the 51st Annual Congress of the Japan Epilepsy Society
November 3-5, 2017, Kyoto
(Art for Epilepsy Exhibition 2017 to be held simultaneously)
- Best care, Best research and Future
Dear friends and colleagues,
The 51st Congress of the Japan Epilepsy Society will be held for three days from November 3 (Friday) to November 5 (Sunday), 2017 at the Kyoto International Conference Center (ICCK), Takaragaike, Kyoto City. We are looking forward to seeing you all in Kyoto. This is for the first time in last 20 years that the Congress is held in Kinki Region, since the 31st congress held in 1997 in Kyoto, chaired by the late President Itsuo Kawai (Head of National Hospital Organization Utano Hospital). The last year’s 50th Congress marked the half-century milestone of the Japan Epilepsy Society, and the coming Congress marks the first step to next half-century.
This time, the theme was formulated as “Best care, Best research and Future”.
The context of epilepsy significantly varies but commonly closely interrelated aspects such as basic medicine, clinical medicine, treatment and care.
Due to improving mutual links, i.e., translatability, epilepsy is expected to become a curable disease in the very near future. Providing the best “care” requires constant backup from basic and clinical “research”, being two halves of the whole. The key to this goal is lifelong, continuous education by which we can pass the current research to the “future”. These thoughts underlie this year’s theme.
Let us explain an outline of this year’s Congress as follows.
1) Free abstract submission
We are thankful to have received 419 abstract submission for general presentation, the largest number ever in the previous JES annual congresses. We understand that this is due to the 21st century’s rapidly evolving developments in various aspects of epilepsy including basic research (iPS cell research, understanding of neuronal networks and pathogenesis based on potassium or chloride homeostasis), clinical medicine (plenty of new drugs, new clinical entity such as autoimmune epilepsy and genetic abnormality, epilepsy in the elderly, new diagnostic technology, brain stimulation therapy and a progress in epilepsy definition and seizure and epilepsy classification), and epilepsy care (regional, epilepsy care networks, international campaign against epilepsy, etc.).
2) Special lectures
We cordially invited three distinguished professors from abroad. They will kindly inform us about the most important content in their respective fields. Namely, as introduced in the order of lectures in the congress, Prof. Samuel Wiebe, ILAE President (Canada), will give the lecture on the topic as “Precision Medicine in Epilepsy” (November 3), Prof. Alexis A. Arzimanoglou (France) will present “Childhood epilepsy syndromes: a constantly evolving concept” based on the new international classification 2017 (November 4), and Prof. Jean Gotman (Canada) will speak about the latest development in digital electroencephalography as “EEG, the New Frontier” (November 4).
3) Honorary educational lectures
We asked three Senior Professors or Professors Emeritus to deliver their inspiring messages to young clinicians, researchers and physician-scientists. As introduced in the order of lectures in the congress, Prof. Emeritus Hiroshi Shibasaki, Kyoto University, will speak on the concept of research and clinical practice in his lecture: “Pathophysiology of Cortical Myoclonus” (November 3).
Prof. Hans O. Lüders (USA) will discuss the concept of epileptogenic focus and its network in his lecture: ”Concept of the Epileptogenic Zone” (November 4). Prof. Emeritus Tatsuya Tanaka, former ILAE Vice-President, will present the comprehensive overview on generalized seizures from the experimental epilepsy in his lecture: “Primary Generalized Seizure and Secondarily Generalized Seizure: What We Have Learned from Experimental Models of Epilepsy” (November 4).
4) AOEC (Asian & Oceanian Epilepsy Congress) expert lectures (two lectures) November 3)
We asked Prof. Shih-Hui Lim and Prof. Byung In Lee, the previous Chairmens of CAOA (Commission on Asian and Oceanian Affairs), ILAE, the 2nd and 3rd respectively, to deliver educational lectures. CAOA includes a highly regarded educational task force called ASEPA (Asian Epilepsy Academy), established by the late Prof. Masakazu Seino, former JES President, by far prior to five regional structures of ILAE other than CAOA. Both professors have contributed a great deal to ASEPA development as a chairmen, and have delivered many lectures throughout Asia and Oceania. Based on their valuable experience, Prof. Shih-Hui Lim (Singapore) will deliver a lecture entitled “Training and Education in Epileptology – From Achieving Conpetencies to Building Capabilities” about fostering self-learning capability of the specialists in epileptology education and training based on methodology of education. Prof. Byung In Lee will speak on the latest antiepileptic drugs in his lecture: “Essence of Drug Treatment in Epilepsy”.
5) Congress Chairman’s lecture (November 4)
Based on the title as “Neurons, Glia and Epilepsy: Is it a Paradigm Shift ?”, the Congress Chairman will demonstrate the results of data accumulation in an institute, multi-institutional collaborative research, standardization of recording and data analysis, collaborative researches in the neuropathology and in the mathematical modeling. Particularly, we strongly understand, within the JES, the importance of establishing a system of multi-institutional collaborative, large-scale studies such as one already developed in the western countries, and thus we will hold the Workshop 2: “Towards Multi-Institutional Collaborative Large-Scale Studies”.
6) Nine symposia (including two KES-JES symposia) and eight workshops
The themes of symposia and workshops were formulated based on the results of questionnaire surveys conducted among the JES board members before summer 2016. Afterwards, two organizers per one program – mainly, members of Program Committee and Steering Committee – specialized in each respective themes were assigned for each program to construct the outline, targets, and then appropriate candidate speakers. As a result, we could reflect the wide opinions of many experts in the JES. In addition, we aimed at minimizing the overlap of speakers as small as possible in order to provide as many experts as possible with opportunity of speakers.
The programs cover a wide range from fundamental themes to the cutting-edge issues (iPS and epilepsy, telemedicine, epileptogenesis and network, epilepsy in the elderly, glia and epilepsy, etc.). As in the previous years, the important issues were complementarily covered by the programs organized by the JES permanent committees (Committee of Gender Equality, Committee of Promotion of Basic Research, and Committee of Long-Term Program). As regards workshops, we will also hold sessions to deepen our understanding through debates such as “Pros and cons of epileptic surgery”.
KES-JES symposium (November 3) will be dedicated to 1) “New trend of epilepsy from basic to clinical: mTOR pathway and AMPA” and 2) “Emotional Disturbance in People with Epilepsy”; these themes were finalized through the discussion between JES Committee of International Affairs and KES.
7) 11 educational lectures and 16 marathon lectures
The educational lectures and marathon lectures deal with lifelong education of medical specialists and basic content at the beginner level, respectively; both will provide opportunities for learning educational programs during 2 full days.
8) Day 3 program (Sunday, November 5)
In addition to the usual program, a newly planned medical staff session is scheduled. After the closing ceremony at noon, a two-part public lectures (“Let’s Know Epilepsy More ”) will be given; with regard to cooperation on epilepsy care between local clinics and hospitals, members of Kyoto Medical Association were helpful in planning as well as assigning speakers and chairmen.. We hope the medical practitioners will participate in the program by means of one-day admission tickets. In the post-congress symposium (“Advanced ECoG/EEG Analysis in Epilepsy”), two foreign speakers and four Japanese speakers will give lectures and discussion, and posters within the session will also be presented.
9) Art for Epilepsy Exhibition 2017
This Exhibition newly started during the last year’s Congress in Shizuoka has acquired a very high reputation. This year, thus, the 2nd Exhibition is to be held with extensive support by Dr. Yushi Inoue, Director of Shizuoka Institute of Epilepsy and Neurological Disorders. The Exhibition is scheduled within a special exhibition in the Kyoto University Museum on November 1–5 (9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.) centering on the Congress to be held on November 3–5. More than 160 works were presented last year; the two-dimensional works is preferred this year,, and about 90 works have been submitted. It is prepared with a great help of specialists of Kyoto City University of Arts. We are going to link the art exhibition to the information for ‘appropriate understanding of epilepsy’. Besides, upon completion of the public lecture (“Let’s Know Epilepsy More”) in the afternoon of the third (last) day of the Congress, we will provide transportation of bus directly to the Kyoto University Museum; only on day 3, the Museum will kindly extend its opening hours (until 7:30 p.m.).
In addition to those plans, as usual, we will hold a continuous medical education session for supervisors (November 3), case discussion on difficult problems (November 4), technical workshop on VNS (Vagus Nerve Stimulation) (November 5), and teaching seminar in epileptology (November 5).
Upon the unusual long description of the content of 51st annual congress of JES 2017 in Kyoto, we hope that you will enjoy your stay in Kyoto in November, the most attractive season famous for beautiful autumn leaves. We will do our best to make this Congress and Kyoto enjoyable for both Japanese and foreign participants from Asia, Oceania, and other parts of the world in this planet.
In closing, we would like to express our deep gratitude to all who cooperated in preparation for the Congress, i.e., JES office, congress office in the Departments of Epilepsy, Movement Disorders, and Physiology, and of Neurology, Kyoto University Graduate School of Medicine and ad hoc committees for annual congress (Program Committee, Steering Committee, many organizers for programed events, the Executive Committee of Art for Epilepsy Exhibition 2017) and so on.
We are looking forward very much to seeing you in Kyoto and to your participation!
September 2017
Akio Ikeda, MD, PhD, FACNS
Chair of 51st Congress of the Japan Epilepsy Society
Chair of Art for Epilepsy Exhibition 2017 Executive Committee
Ryosuke Takahashi, MD, PhD
Vice-Chair of 51st Congress of the Japan Epilepsy Society