Respiratory Drug Delivery (RDD®) Europe 2019 took place at the Estoril Congress Center near Lisbon, Portugal, from May 7–10, attracting academic, government, and pharmaceutical industry representatives to hear and build on the latest scientific, clinical and regulatory advances. Jointly organized by RDD Online and Aptar Pharma, the conference was notable for the quality of its highly regarded presenters and progressive program themes. Attracting over 500 delegates from over 30 countries, this was the largest RDD Europe conference to date, with the majority of delegates coming from continental Europe (47%) and the others traveling from the UK (25%), the US and Canada (16%) or Brazil, China, India, Israel, Japan, Singapore, Taiwan, Tunisia, Turkey, Ukraine, and Uruguay (collectively, 12%). About 85% of attendees reported working for pharmaceutical companies or their suppliers while the remaining 15% were from academia and regulatory authorities.
Speakers
The conference opened with an energizing plenary address by Jadwiga Wedzicha, M.D., Professor of Respiratory Medicine at the National Heart and Lung Institute, Imperial College London, entitled Unraveling Triple Therapy in Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease. The scientific program expanded from there to sessions covering New Treatment Approaches; Pipes, Particles, and Predictions: New Insights into Deposition; Re-Inventing Inhalers for the Digital Age; Inhalation Product Development and Production, plus Take a Deep Breath, a session delving into the implications of Brexit and Environmental Sustainability. A post-conference audience evaluation showed delegates appreciated hearing about new approaches to challenges facing the industry.
Scientific Posters, Technology Exhibition, and Workshops
Delegates enjoyed extensive networking opportunities in a variety of professional settings including the Scientific Poster Session and Technology Exhibition, and Workshops. One-on-one interactions, small group discussions and hands-on demonstrations have become popular formats for highlighting innovations in pulmonary and nasal delivery and serve to connect researchers, managers, customers, and suppliers from around the globe in a relaxed atmosphere that fosters easy communication and networking. Twelve interactive workshops were hosted by pharmaceutical industry suppliers and service providers, and covered diverse topics directly applicable to the specific interests of the conference goers who chose to attend.
Following five excellent Poster on the Podium presentations, the 2019 RDD VCU Peter R. Byron Graduate Student Award was presented to Hui Wang for his abstract and poster titled, “Agitation Method Affects Colloidal Stability of Pharmaceutical Suspensions”. Hui is a recent Ph.D. graduate from the Particle Engineering Group at the University of Alberta. All graduate students who had a poster abstract accepted for the conference and attended RDD Europe 2019 were eligible to receive the award, which covers the winners registration fee, travel expenses and accommodation. The next award will be made at Respiratory Drug Delivery 2020 in Palm Desert, California. The deadline for Scientific Poster abstracts is January 13, 2020.
Connecting Science and People
Beyond the scientific program, posters, exhibition and workshop offerings, the opening cocktail reception and daily breaks provided additional casual opportunities to meet new clients and colleagues and reconnect with old friends. The “New Discoveries” Gala Dinner was a huge hit, held at Sud Lisboa overlooking the River Tagus.
Conference Proceedings
Participants each received a compilation of peer-reviewed, professionally produced articles corresponding to each podium and poster presentation, plus 12-months of complimentary electronic access courtesy of RDD Online. Papers presented at RDD Europe 2019 also become part of the highly cited and searchable RDD archive, which now contains over 2,400 papers covering over 30 years of pulmonary and nasal research.
Thank You
RDD meetings are made possible by your attendance and enthusiastic participation.
The RDD Team and Aptar Pharma are grateful to our sponsors, exhibitors, and all participants and contributors to whom we credit the continuing success of this scientific conference series. With eight meetings behind us, RDD Europe is firmly established as an outstanding venue to conceive new projects and put existing ones on the fast track.
We return to the United States for Respiratory Drug Delivery 2020, which will be held at the JW Marriott Desert Springs in Palm Desert, California, April 26–30, 2020.
Further out on the horizon, RDD Europe 2021 will return to Antibes, France, May 4-7, 2021, and between RDD 2020 and RDD Europe 2021, RDD Asia 2020 will convene in India. We hope you will join us for one or all of these conferences.
Visit rddonline.com to learn more about future conferences and other RDD services.
