BRUSSELS, Belgium, 20 June 2006. The recommendations of a two-day EU Consensus Conference on Primary Immunodeficiencies (PIDs) were announced today at the Paul-Ehrlich-Institute in Langen, Germany. The conference, supported by the European Commission with Baxter as the leading industry sponsor, recommended that European national governments need to recognise the public health implications of Primary Immunodeficiencies and take action to address the chronic under diagnosis of these conditions in Europe.

 

The EU PID Consensus Conference is 60% funded by the European Commission as part of the EU's Public Health Programme. Baxter is the leading commercial conference sponsor. The Conference itself has been organised as a joint partnership between the International Patient Organisation for Primary Immunodeficiencies (IPOPI), the European Society for Immunodeficiencies (ESID), the International Nurses Group for Immunodeficiencies (INGID) and the European Federation for Immunological Societies (EFIS). Attendees to this conference included EU and national politicians, parliamentarians, patients as well as the experts who treat and provide care for patients with PIDs from across the 25 EU Member States.

 

The aim of the conference is to harness information that together:

• Communicates to EU governments the extent of the negative impact PIDs and undiagnosed patients currently have on healthcare,
• Demonstrates the disparities of care and treatment that exist for people with PIDs across the EU,
• Provides examples of immediate actions and initiatives Member State governments can take to reduce the burden of PIDs.

 

As a result of the Conference, an initial Consensus Statement, which includes recommendations towards a public health approach to PIDs, has been published. The final Conference Report and Recommendations will be published in October 2006 and widely communicated to public health authorities throughout the EU when it is intended to become a common reference document.

 

Bianca Pizzera, Chairperson for IPOPI, comments: “This landmark conference shows that PIDs are now being recognised as a Public Health priority in Europe. We thank all those who continue to support us, through this conference and other initiatives, to achieve this recognition”.

 

Hartwig Gajek, Baxter's Medical Director in Europe comments: ”Baxter is proud to have this opportunity to support the patient, nurse and physician organisations, in their efforts to improve early diagnosis, access to advance therapies and provision of care”.