ISAM Membership
Please remember to update your ISAM membership! Visit the ISAM website ASAP to pay your dues. Renew
to ensure uninterrupted access to member-only benefits such as full access to the Journal of
Aerosol Medicine, the ISAM textbook or the slides from our webinar series. Remember to encourage
your collaborators, students, and research scholars to renew or become an ISAM member!
Thank you for your continued support!
Adapting Aerosols in Medicine during COVID-19 Global Pandemic
 The global
COVID-19 pandemic has drawn a light on the critical role that aerosols play in medicine. This
role includes the ability to utilize inhalation as a route of drug delivery, the potential
for respiratory transmission of disease and the need for scientists (academic and commercial)
to work with regulatory scientists to work efficiently in response to an evolving need. In
all of this ISAM, its members and the community that relies on their expertise have found themselves
in the middle of it all. It would be impossible to highlight every example that aerosols in
medicine have had on the recent COVID-19 pandemic but it’s important to highlight some examples
that display the important role ISAM’s expertise plays in this global pandemic.
The role of aerosol transmission of COVID-19 has been debated and discussed throughout the current
pandemic. It has been well accepted by the scientific community that the risk of transmission
is increased during the interactions that medical professionals have with infected patients.
Jie Li presented data on the recommendations for preventing
transmission for clinicians when working with infected patients. Dr. Li highlighted the importance
of proper PPE and its impact in reducing the infection rate in the care takers. She also presented
novel data on surface contamination in a patient’s room highlighting the contact areas that
can have virus on them. Gerhard Scheuch recently published a manuscript in the Journal of Aerosol Medicine and Pulmonary Drug Delivery on the potential for aerosol transmission during normal breathing. His thorough review concluded
that yes there is the potential that normal breathing has the possibility to transmit viruses.
Throughout the medical community there has also been concerns about the ability / risk related
with treating infected patients with aerosols. Undoubtedly there is a potential that delivery
of an aerosol to an infected patient has the potential to generate an aerosol that may pose
a risk to the caregivers. Because of this ISAM’s experts published a recommendation paper on
the risks related to these procedures and offered guidance and suggestions to treating patients
with aerosols during this pandemic. A copy will be posted on https://www.isam.org/covid as soon as it is available. Similar recommendations have also been published by ISAM member Arzu Ari.
The global population has largely been asked to utilize a face covering or a mask to minimize
the risk of transmission. During the early days of the pandemic more traditional masks (N95’s
and surgical masks) were in short supply. Therefore, experts in the field sought out creative
ideas to alleviate this issue. These included sterilization approaches with VHP (Battelle’s CCDS system) and other chemical methods.
Additionally, many businesses started to produce alternatives to masks in face coverings. With
each of these testing was required to confirm the functionality and again ISAM’s members rose
to meet this challenge! Conor Ruzycki and Phillip Clapp presented data on the effectiveness of multiple different types of mask and on the performance of these masks
before and after simulated sterilization. There results can be used to help users determine
the appropriate face covering for their situation and risk level.
Ultimately, in order to address the COVID-19 pandemic innovators and regulatory agencies
will have to work together to efficiently (balancing speed/risk/safety) move new vaccine and
therapeutic candidates through the drug development pipeline. Most estimates of standard drug
development range from 5 – 15 years to develop a new drug and get it approved for use. Clearly
that timeline is inappropriate in a global pandemic. In order to provide guidance on how to
address this the ISAM Regulatory and Standarization Issues Networking Group published an appeal to regulatory decision makers. These recommendations include ‘weighing carefully the therapeutic
risk versus benefit for each type of product and patient population, rather than using the
“one size fits all” approach’. As evidence of regulatory agencies and innovators working together
in this balance of risk reward we have seen Gilead’s remdesivir be approved for clinical trials via inhalation delivery.
While the world is pulling together to face this global pandemic ISAM continues to be a key part
of the generation, publication and presentation of evidence-based data for its members and
the medical community. For the most current literature, webinars and expertise ISAM has created
an open location (available to all) for COVID-19 ( https://www.isam.org/covid)
members and non-members are encouraged to view this website often!
Boise is Next
In response to potential travel concerns in 2021, ISAM is arranging to stream and record all workshops,
lectures, posters and exhibitor information to enable all participants to have a full experience
of the ISAM Congress in Boise, even if they choose to participate virtually. We expect that
this expanded capability should increase participation, exposure and impact, globally, and
expand the value of the Congress beyond the onsite experience.
With the uncertainty of large meetings and travel in the era of COVID-19 (and whatever new pandemic
may arise by next May), we are developing options to provide a safe and educationally action-packed
forum for our members and registrants. For those not comfortable or able to travel to Boise
next May, ISAM will use state of the art software that allows us to broadcast and record all
of our sessions including the workshops and programs. Not only will this allow speakers to
present whether on site or virtually, it will enable registrants to peruse the content over
an expanded time frame.
The program committee is hard at work designing a program that allows full participation both on-site
and virtually.
On the ground, for those who come to Boise, we are restructuring the Congress experience to minimize
risk by incorporating social distancing, providing safe food service options and implementing
other precautions. The weather is typically lovely that time of year so we are exploring outside
options as well. Fortunately, there are a number of cafes and restaurant with outdoor seating
in close vicinity to the Congress center.
Registrants from across the street and from around the world can participate in real time, or at
a time more convenient with their local sleep cycle, as desired. This includes strategies to
interact with speakers and session chairs both during and after the live presentations. All
the presentations will be available on the conference website and available to registrants
over an expanded time frame.
Abstract submission will be much like previous congresses, but we will provide an option to display
posters in both analog (paper, cloth or plastic) and digital format. We encourage use of both
formats, as we develop strategies for poster presenters to interact with Congress participants
via both platforms.
In the same vein, we are developing a real and virtual exhibition hall, with a number of features
to expand access and participation that will be disclosed in upcoming months.
Now, if only we had digital adult beverages for the poster presentations and receptions. We’ll
keep working on that!!! Whether in person or virtually, we look forward to seeing you in Boise.
That's the plan so far! Let us know what you think, if you would like to participate and/or
suggest anything else that might be of interest.
Drop an email to jfink@aerogenpharma.com and/or
aclark@aertogenpharma.com. |
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Nivedita Shetty
Sabine Haussermann
Mark Nagel
Samir Shah, PhD
Jeffry Weers, PhD
Trinity College Dublin 
Consider submitting your latest
aerosol drug delivery research to the 
