The 62nd Annual Meeting of the Japanese Society for Inherited Metabolic Diseases will be held at Winc Aichi (Aichi Industry & Labor Center) in front of JR Nagoya Station for a three-day period from Thursday, November 4 to Saturday, November 6, 2021. This will be the third time when our Society’s Annual Meeting is held in Nagoya, after the 12th Annual Meeting (Japanese Society of Pediatric Metabolic Disorders, 1972, Chairman: Prof. Jiro Ogawa, Department of Pediatrics, Nagoya City University) and the 29th Annual Meeting (1986, Chairman: Prof. Yoshiro Wada, Department of Pediatrics, Nagoya City University). Having studied under Prof. Yoshiro Wada, I feel deeply honored to be able to hold this year’s Annual Meeting here in Nagoya 35 years after the last Annual Meeting held in this city, chaired by Prof. Wada.

Amidst the spread of COVID-19 outbreak, I suspect all Society members and their associates face tremendous difficulties in their day-to-day work. Patients and their families must be living in even greater uncertainties than we do. At a time like this, it is crucially important to work together to deliver medical care in a “patients first” approach.

Accordingly, the theme for this year’s Annual Meeting is “What we can do for Patients-First healthcare.” We will look into the theme from new and old perspectives to re-examine healthcare built on the philosophy of Patients First.

Under the current conditions, it is unclear whether the Annual Meeting could be held in a regular format. Yet, preparation is underway in earnest to enable a face-to-face meeting at the planned venue. We are making utmost efforts to make this first Annual Meeting after overcoming the COVID-19 pandemic. Your attendance would be sincerely appreciated.

Please visit the website of the event for specific details, which will be updated as they become available.

62nd Annual Meeting of the Japanese Society for Inherited Metabolic Diseases
18th Asian Symposium of Inherited Metabolic Diseases
Chairman: Tetsuya Ito
(Professor, Department of Pediatrics, School of Medicine, Fujita Health University)