APSR Newsletter

Vol. 4, No. 1, 1995

Editor:	Shiro Kira
Associate Editors:	Yoshinosuke Fukuchi Takashi Horie J. Patrick Barron

In this issue

• Message from the President of the 4th Congress of the APSR
• Respirology - the APSR's new official journal is launched
• Hong Kong Report
• Activities of the APSR
  • Executive Meeting in Manila
  • International Workshop in Pulmonary Epidemiology: Reasearch Methods
  • Workshop at the Japanese Society of Chest Diseases (JSCD)
  • Secretarial Report
• Officers of the APSR

Message from the President of the 4th Congress of the APSR

Greetings from China.

The fourth Congress of the Asian and Pacific Society of Respirology will be held in the Olympic Center in Beijing from October 4th, (Friday) to 8th (Tuesday), 1996. Doctors and investigators and their families are heartily welcome to this major Congress.

Beijing is an ancient capital which has adapted to modern life. This historical city offers wonderful opportunities for visitors with its world-famous Great Wall, the Forbidden City, and the Temple of Heaven etc. October is the Golden Season in Beijing with blue sky and sunny weather. A range of interesting and various optional social programs will be available together with post-conference tours of Xi'an and Shanghai.

During the APSR Congress, an international panel of eminent speakers with the latest information and experience will be invited to grace the occasion. There is great need for cooperation and experience sharing among us all and this gathering will provide a much-needed platform to review latest advances in respirology, especially in the Asian Pacific region, but also throughout the world, including:

• Critical care medicine
• Allergic airway diseases
• Acute pulmonary infections
• Tuberculosis and non-tuberculous mycobacterial diseases
• Smoking-related lung diseases
• Occupational lung diseases
• Lung cancer
• Interstitial lung diseases
• Sleep apnea syndrome
• AIDS related pulmonary diseases
• Lung function tests with ethnic differences
• Experiences in imaging the lung with CT scan, MRI etc.

We believe that the Congress will promote international respirology and friendship in the Asian-Pacific region.

I look forward to welcoming you to Beijing in October 1996.

Dr. Wei-Ci Luo, M.D.
President of the Chinese Thoracic Society,
Professor of Peking Union Medical College,
President of the Chinese Society of Respiratory Disease, People's Republic of China

Deadline for abstracts: February 20, 1996

Registrations fees cheaper if paid before July 15, 1996.

Inquiries about the Congress:
Prof. Shiro Kira, MD
Secretary General, APSR
Juntendo University, School of Medicine
3-1-3 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113 Japan
Fax: 81-3-5684-3382

Inquiries about Hotel Accommodations and Post congress Tours:
Dr. Wei-Ci Luo, MD
Organizing Committee, 4th Congress of APSR
c/o Chinese Medical Association
42 Dongsi Xidajie, Beijing 100710 China
Fax: 86-lO-512-3754

Respirology - the APSR's new official journal is launched

The APSR Official Journal is to be launched in March, 1996

RESPIROLOGY is the official journal of the Asian Pacific Society of Respirology. The journal publishes original papers of international interest on laboratory and clinical research and clinical observations that are pertinent to respiratory biology and disease. Clinical and experimental work dealing with the whole field of respirology, including cell and molecular biology, epidemiology, intensive and critical care, and thoracic surgery will be published.

Papers are published in Respirology in the approximate order of date of final acceptance under the following categories: Original Articles, Editorials and Reviews, Technical Notes, Case Reports and Letters to the Editor.

All contributions will be reviewed by an Associate Editor and external referees within three months form date of receipt.

Style of papers

All contributions should be written in English, double-spaced, spelling should conform to the Concise Oxford Dictionary of Current English Usage. Style should conform to standard manuals such as Uniform Requirements for Manuscripts submitted to Biomedical Joumals, as presented in JAMA 1993; 269: 2282-6.

Papers should be written so that they are intelligible to the professional reader who is not a specialist in the particular field. The Editors reserve the right to modify typescripts to eliminate ambiguity and repetition and improve communication between author and reader. If extensive alterations are required, the manuscript will be returned to the author for revision. There will be no discrimination on the basis of the first language of the author(s). Where contributions are submitted to Respirology by authors who are not fully conversant with the English language, and where those contributions are judged as acceptable for publication on the basis of scientific content, the Editors may elect to have the English of such contributions improved. This English improvement service may be undertaken by the Editors, the publisher or an appointed representative of the publisher and contributions so improved will be returned to the authors for final checking.

Research

Investigations in human subjects must conform to accepted ethical standards. Consent must be obtained from each patient after full explanation of the purpose, nature and risks of all procedures used and the fact that such consent has been given should be recorded in the paper. In addition authors must state that the protocol for the research project has been approved by a suitably constituted Ethics Committee of the institution within which the work was undertaken, and that it conforms to the provisions of the World Medical Associations Declaration of Helsinki as revised by the 20th World Medical Assembly in Tokyo in 1975 (WHO Chronicle 1976; 30: 360-2).

Conflict of Interest

Authors should disclose at the time of submission any financial arrangements they may have with a company whose product figures prominently in the submitted manuscript or with a company making a competing product. Such information will be held in confidence while the paper is under review and will not innuence the editorial decision but, if the article is accepted for publication, the Editors will usually discuss with the authors the manner in which such information is to be communicated to the reader.

Because the essence of reviews and editorials is selection and interpretation of the literature, the Editors expect that the authors of such article will not have any financial interest in a company (or its competitor) that makes a product discussed in the article.

Manuscripts on disk

Authors are encouraged to provide final copy in machine-readable form, but disks should not be sent until the paper has been accepted. It is essential that the final version of the hard copy and the file on the disk be identical.

Authors should supply their accepted papers as formatted text on disk (any word-processing format can be handled). The hardware and the word processing package must be specified on the disk.

The paper should be divided into separate files for text and tables. Use only one Tab (not spaces) to separate each column in a table.

Extended abstracts

In order to subsidize the production of Respirology so that it is available at minimum cost to subscribers, a summary of the journal will be translated into Japanese for distribution by a pharmaceutical company. Authors should include an extended abstracts of no more than 1,000 words; the Editors will add the tables and figures they consider most appropriate.

Respirology Volume 1 Issue 1

This will include articles contributed by:

• Dr. WC Tan - Description of APSR
• Dr. S Kira - Aims and Scope
• Dr. WC Luo - Invitation to the 1996 Congress
• Dr. P Macklem - "Respirology"

Review articles will include

• Dr. S Kira - Disintegration of the 'Waterfall Phenomenon' in inferior vena cava due to right heart failure
• Dr. Bovornkitti - Tropical Pulmonary Diseases
• Dr. T de Guia - Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome: Diagnosis and Management
• Dr. WC Tan - DNA diagnosis of pulmonary infections - particular emphasis on Mycobacterium Tuberculosis
• Dr. PC Yang - New Developments in Diagnosis and Management in Lung Cancer

Original articles will include:

• Dr. M Masutani - A Phase III Randomized Trial of Cisplatin plus Vindesine Versus Cisplatin plus Vindesine plus Mitomycin C Versus Cisplatin plus Vindesine plus Ifosfamide for Advanced Non-Small-Cell Lung Cancer
• Dr. A Balgos - Cardiovascular and Respiratory Adjustments in Normal Volunteers During Modified Exercise Tests in Comparison to Standard Exercise Tests
• Dr. M Munakata - Interleukin-1b Decreases Sensitivity of Guinea-pig Airway to Potassium Chloride and Isoproterenol by an Epithelium- Dependent Mechanism
• Dr. S Charoenratanakul - The Efficacy of Doxycycline as a Pleural Sclerosing Agent in Malignant Pleural Effusion. A prospective Study

Special Report by:

• Dr. P Scale - Report on Smoking and Health: "A Physician Responsibility: A Statement of the Joint Committee on Smoking and Health"

Special thanks to:

• Dr. Y Ichinose of Tokyo Medical College, Dr. H Takahashi of Juntendo University, and Dr. T Matsuse of Tokyo University, for their participation in editorial duties.

Original manuscripts welcomed. RESPIROLOGY
Dr. Shiro Kira, Editor-in-Chief,
he Asian Pacific Society of Respirology
Yoshikawa Bldg No. 2, 2nd Floor,
2-9-8 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113,
JAPAN

Hong Kong Report

The Hong Kong Thoracic Society (HKTS) held its Annual General Meeting on 25 April 1995, and Dr. Mary Ip of the Division of Respiratory Medicine, University of Hong Kong has been elected President 1995-1997.

The HKTS now has a membership of 294. Its main activities 1994-1995 included the following (often in collaboration with the Hong Kong & Macao Chapter of the American College of Chest Physicians):

1. Organization of monthly clinical meetings which are presented on a rotating basis by the 13 accredited respiratory training centers.
2. Organization of regular scientific meetings with participation by overseas speakers:
   1. Scientific meeting at our Annual General Meeting: Serological diagnosis of TB by enzyme-immunoassay Dr. WW Yew; Sleep apnea syndrome; Dr. J Chan; APACHE II method in predicting intensive care outcome in a general hospital in Hong Kong, Dr. JC Chan; A survey of long term oxygen therapy in an acute general hospital, Dr. WC Yu; Rationale of choosing inhaled steroids in asthma, Dr. KF Chung (Royal Brompton hospital, UK).
   2. Other scientific meetings on asthma, lung cancer and pulmonary rehabilitation with participation by overseas speakers (Dr. Peter Howarth, UK, Dr. Philip Thompson, Australia, Dr. Gravin Petrie, UK, Dr. Ronald Dahl, Denmark, Dr. David Center, USA, Dr. Neil Barnes, UK).
3. Organization of the 13th Asia Pacific Congress on Diseases of the Chest, 5-8 December 1994. This was a highly successful international chest congress attended by over 1,300 delegates from over 32 countries.
4. Publication of a quarterly Newsletter with academic editorials, summary of clinical meetings, meeting notices, society. and professional news, both local and internationaI, lists of members publications etc.
5. Sponsorship for overseas international conference attendance and presentation of papers; in the past year, we sponsored 13 members to attend 10 conferences, including the IUATLD World Conference, ERS conference, ACCP Conference, AAACI Meeting, ATS Meeting and ICC Congress.
6. Organization of Educational "Teach-in" and "Updates" sessions for respiratory physician trainees and giving expert advice to the Hong Kong Academy of Medicine on training of respiratory physicians in Hong Kong.
7. Publication of a position paper on asthma management guidelines.

With the support of the International Association of Allergology and Clinical Immunology, the two chest societies of Hong Kong will hold the First Hong Kong Allergy Forum on 25-26 November 1995 at the Hong Kong Sheraton Hotel and Towers. Leading overseas experts with Hong Kong speakers will share their experience in clinical allergology with participants.

Under the joint auspices of the Hong Kong Thoracic Society and the Hong Kong & Macao chapter of the ACCP, the Hong Kong Lung Foundation Trust Fund has just been established with the following objectives:

1. to foster public education in respiratory diseases,
2. to support research in respiratory diseases, and
3. to support staff education and training in respirology.

We now have structured training programs for respiratory medicine in thirteen accredited training centers in Hong Kong, and we wish to develop a closer relationship with all thoracic societies in the Asia-Pacific region and beyond, and to exchange ideas in promoting respirology.

Wah-Kit Lam, MD, FRCP, FRACP, FTIM (Med)
Reader and Chief
Division of Respiratory Medicine,
Queen Mary Hospital,
University of Hong Kong

Activities of the APSR

Executive Meeting in Manila

A Formal Executive Meeting was held in Manila on February 29, 1995. Attendees were; Dr. Ampikaipakan, Prof. Barron, Dr. Berend, Dr. Fukuchi, Dr. de Guia, Dr. Harasawa, Dr. Kira, Dr. Luo, Dr. Takizawa, Dr. Woolcock, Dr. Yang, Dr. Zainnudin, Dr. Mangunnegoro, Dr. Suchai and Dr. Tan. The Secretary General reported that monthly meetings had been held with Dr. Kira, Dr. Fukuchi, Prof. Barron and Mrs. Mori, the APSR assistant, to map out activities and decide what the Secretariat has to do during the coming months. Dr. Luo reported the progress of the Beijiqg Congress. The Fourth Congress of the APSR will be held from October 4-8, 1996 at the Beijing International Convention Center.

The APSR Secretariat printed and distributed the 2nd Announcement for this congress in April, 1995. The seed money for the Congress was sent to China on April ll, 1995. Invited speakers for the Fourth Congress of the APSR will include Dr. Alvin Ing, Dr. David Tuxen, Dr. Bruce WS Robinson, Professor Peter Barnes, Professor James C Hogg, Professor Leonard Hudson, Professor Colin Sullivan, Dr. Patrick Holt, Professor Ann Woolcock, Professor Yoshikazu Kawakami, Professor Masayuki Ando, Dr. Nan Shan Zhong, Dr. Sonia Buist, Dr. Peter T Macklem and Dr. ST Holgate.

Dr. Berend and Dr. Woolcock reported the offers of two publishing companies to publish the society journal. Blackwell Science Pty. Ltd. was chosen to publish the journal. The journal was then named "RESPIROLOGY". In order to obtain a subsidy for the journal, thereby minimizing the cost for APSR members, the idea of publishing a Japanese-language mini version of the journal consisting of extended abstracts, paid for by a pharmaceutical company, was suggested by Professor Barron. This concept was eventually made possible through the financial negotiations by Dr. Fukuchi. As a result, the journal will be available to APSR members without any increase in annual dues for 1996.

Dr. Woolcock was appointed as Chairperson of the Organizing Committee for the World Lung Health Conference to be held in the year 2000.

Dr. Fukuchi reported the APSR workshop to be held in Japan in 3-5 April, 1996. It was decided that the APSR would endorse the JSCD workshop.

International Workshop in Pulmonary Epidemiology: Reasearch Methods

Time:

• 16-23 March, 1996

Place:

• Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Objectives:

• The Workshop aims to provide participants with the skills to design and conduct epidemiological and/or community based research directed at local lung health problems.

Target Audience:

• Respiratory physicians and other health care workers in the South East Asia region whose careers include a commitment to research in lung health.

Seating:

• Limited to 25 Participants

Cost:

• The cost per participant is US$1,OOO. This covers the course fee, accommodation, lunch and tea. Participants are encouraged to seek sponsorship from within their own countries. The secretariat will have some sponsorship funds available on application.

Mode of Payment:

• Bank draft drawn in Malaysian Banks payable to: Malaysian Thoracic Society.

Subjects to be covered:

• Development of a research hypothesis
• Critical appraisal of the relevant literature
• Designing a study to test the hypothesis
• Selecting and assessing appropriate measurement tools
• Selecting appropriate methods for statistical analysis
• Ethical issues
• Research protocol design

The Faculty will include:

• Professor Ann Woolcock, Institute of Respiratory Medicine, Sydney, Australia
• Professor Peter Burney, Dept. of Community Medicine, UMDS, London, UK
• Dr. Guy Marks, Institute of Respiratory Medicine, Sydney, Australia
• Professor Azizi Omar, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur.

Apply by:

• 31 December, 1995

To:

• Malaysian Thoracic Society
  c/o Institute of Respiratory Medicine,
  Hospital Kuala Lumpur,
  Jalan Pahang,
  53000 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
  phone: 603-423-2966
  fax: 603-421 8807

Workshop at the Japanese Society of Chest Diseases (JSCD)

Time:

• 3-5 April, 1996

Place:

• Utsunomiya City, Tochigi, Japan

Objectives:

• To promote scientific exchange and friendship among young investigators in the field of respirology in the Asia Pacific region. The participants will be invited from all the APSR membership countries. This workshop is fully sponsored by the Japan Society of Chest Diseases. Young investigators from Australia, Beijing, China, Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan, as well as Japan will be invited this time. The remaining membership countries (Hong Kong, Indonesia, Republic of Korea, Malaysia and Thailand) will also have the equal opportunity.

Special lectures:

• Professor JF Murray - "Tuberculosis and HIV Infection in Global Perspectives"
• Dr. Gerard J Huchon - "Management of Lower Respiratory Tract Infections by European General Practitioners"

General lectures:

• John W Upham, MD (Australia) - "T-cell Proliferative Responses to Mite Allergens are Detectable in Most Individuals Regardless of Atopic Status and Age"
• NK Chin, MD (Singapore) - "Population Based Standards for Pulmonary Functions in Non-smoking Adults In Singapore"
• Baiyi Chen, MD (PR China) - "Ameliorating Effect of Erythromycin on Bleomysin-induced Pulmonary Fibrosis - Role of Alveolar Macrophage Activation and Cytokine Release"
• Abner T Koh, MD (Philippines) - "Carbon Dioxide Recruitment Threshold (PC₂RT) as a Predictor of Successful Weaning in COPD Patients: A Pilot Study"
• Pan-Chyr Yang, MD (Taiwan) - "Applications of Color Doppler Ultrasonography in the Investigation of Chest Diseases"
• Yoshiyuki Uchida, MD (Japan) - "Role of Endogenous Nitric Oxide on the Pathogenesis of Bronchial Asthma"

Secretarial Report

• The APSR Tokyo Office has moved!

  New address: Yoshikawa BIdg, No. 2, 2nd Floor
  2-9-8 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113
  Japan New numbers; Telephone number: +81-3-5684-3370
  Facsimile number: +81-3-5684-3382

  Office hours: 10:00-15:00, Monday-Friday

  Please submit NEWSLETTER articles you would Iike to share with the APSR members to the above address.

• Annual dues

  Please remember to pay your 1995 membership dues ¥3,000/year). Your annual dues can be paid through any of four major credit cards (VISA, Master, Diners, and Amex). It can also be paid by bank transfer to: Mitsubishi Bank Ltd.
  Shinjuku-shintoshin Branch
  Account No.: 0672212
  Account Name: APSR Annual dues, Shiro Kira, MD

  Note: The bank charges us a handling-fee of ¥1,500 per cheque, therefore bank transfer or credit cards are preferred.

• The Abstracts Deadline for the APSR 4th Congress in Beijing, China is February 20, 1996. (The Registration Fee is US$100 cheaper if paid by July l5, 1996)

• Submission of original manuscripts for Respirology is strongly encouraged.

• Application forms for new membership, the 2nd Announcement for the 4th Congress and guidelines for submission to Respirolosy are available at the Secretariat office ln Tokyo. Please contact the APSR assistant, Ms. Chie Mori.

• Forthcoming Important Dates

  1996 Feb 20	Deadline for Abstracts for the 4th APSR Congress, (Beijing, China)
  1996 Mar 16‑23	International Workshop in Pulmonary Epidemiology: Research Methods (MTS, IUATLD, APSR) (Malaysia)
  1996 Apr 3‑5	APSR Workshop (Utsunomiya, Japan)
  1996 Oct 4‑8	4th APSR Congress (Beijing, People's Republic of China)
  1997 Feb 19‑23	9th Congress of the Western Pacific Association of Critical Care Medicine, (Taipei, Taiwan)
  1998 Oct 9‑14	5th APSR Congress (Sydney, Australia)
  2000 Sep	World Lung Meeting Conference (Florence, Italy)

• APSR Membership

  (as of September 1995)

  Australia	21
  Canada	1
  Hong Kong	8
  Indonesia	18
  Italy	1
  Japan	303
  Malaysia	5
  New Zealand	2
  P.R. China	65
  Pakistan	1
  Philippines	23
  Republic of Korea	18
  Saudi Arabia	1
  Singapore	8
  Taiwan	12
  Thailand	9
  USA	3
  United Kingdom	2
  Total	501

Officers of the APSR

President: President elect: Past President: Secretary General: Treasurer:

Wan-Cheng Tan Wei-Ci Luo Michiyoshi Harasawa Shiro Kira Takao Takizawa

National Representatives

Australia: Beijing, China: Hong Kong: Indonesia: Japan: Republic of Korea: Malaysia: Philippines: Singapore: Taiwan: Thailand:

J Paul Seale Wei-Ci Luo Wah Kit Lam PM Benjamin T Takishima YoungSoo Shim Md Zin Zainudin Teresita S de Guia Wan-Cheng Tan Sze-Piao Yang C. Nuchprayoon

International Advisory Committee

Michiyoshi Harasawa, Takao Takizawa, Ann J Woolcock, Norbert Berend, Yoshinosuke Fukuchi, J Patrick Barron

Past Congress Presidents

1st APSR Congress, Tokyo, 1988: 2nd APSR Congress, Bali, 1990: 3rd APSR Congress, Singapore, 1993: 4th APSR Congress, Beijing, 1996:

Michiyoshi Harasawa Hood Alsagaff Wan-Cheng Tan Wei-Ci Luo