Greetings

Dear colleagues,

It is our great pleasure to extend a warm welcome to you to the 55th Annual Congress of the Japan Epilepsy Society which will take place from Tuesday, September 20 to Thursday, September 22, 2022 at the Sendai International Center.

The theme of this year’s Congress, “Toward Realization of Dreams”, is framed in response to the sense of urgency for prompt improvements that must be made to the current state of epilepsy care. The International League Against Epilepsy (ILAE) points to disparities in treatment between developed and developing countries, noting in a report that these gaps exist not only between countries, but also between urban and rural areas, as well as by household and individual incomes, and are also impacted by racial bias. Many of our own members have grieved over delayed diagnoses and treatments of particular patients they have encountered in daily practice. While it is natural and human to feel distressed about the problems we see before us, we need to look not only at individual issues, but also at the systemic problems that lie behind, and work together to remedy these as a team in our academic community. We hope that this year’s Congress will help members affirm their “dreams and ideals” with one another and find ways to “realize” them. To accomplish this, we have designed and incorporated several mechanisms into this year’s meeting.

The first is a debate session, where two speakers will approach issues we are facing from opposing positions and discuss the pros and cons of each, with subsequent discussions paving the way to practical solutions. People in Japan tend to avoid such discussions because of the importance put on harmonizing with others. However, there will be countless opportunities for everyone at this Congress to identify issues.

The second mechanism is positioning symposiums, workshops and educational lectures as debate sessions with clear themes and topics to clarify issues.

Third is the provision of time and space to stimulate communication between participants. Traditional plenary meetings are risky during a pandemic. However, we plan to set up the “Epilepsy Café” in the early afternoon and the “Epilepsy Lounge” in the late afternoon, around the exhibition hall if conditions with COVID-19 improve, or virtually if this proves difficult, with food and drink provided where practical, to encourage members and exhibiting companies to meet and interact.

The fourth mechanism is outreach. On Monday, September 19, a public holiday the day before the Congress, we would like to organize an event for participants to interact with the public, including patients and their families. On Friday, September 23, the day after the Congress ends which is also a public holiday, we would also like to organize a tour of the areas affected by the Great East Japan Earthquake. We hope you will appreciate the programs we are organizing, and will announce details as they become available.

At the time of writing, it is impossible to predict exactly what the situation with COVID-19 will be before and after the Congress. However, we plan to organize the meeting in such a way that we are equipped to handle any situation that may arise, and thank you sincerely for your cooperation in making this year’s Congress a success.

Nobukazu Nakasato, MD, PhD
President, the 55th Annual Congress of the Japan Epilepsy Society
Professor and Chair
Department of Epileptology, Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine