In this special issue of the Journal of Inherited Metabolic Disease, the reader can find a collection of articles from the lectures given at the SSIEM 2019 Annual Symposium, which took place from 3rd to 6th September 2019 in Rotterdam, The Netherlands. The organization of the symposium was a joined effort by the Amsterdam University Medical Center, Radboud University Medical Center and Erasmus MC University Medical Center. The 2019 edition of the Annual Symposium broke all records with the number of attendees, 3017 registrants from 86 countries.

The general theme of the 2019 Annual Symposium was Building Bridges. A theme that suits the city of Rotterdam very well. Rotterdam is known as a city continuously renewing itself and seeking for innovation. It is in Rotterdam's genes to build bridges and seek connection with the rest of world.

Seeking connection was exactly the goal we had for the 2019 symposium. The metabolic field knows many areas of expertise. Over the years, these different areas have accomplished great things and the future of our patients has considerably improved, but we must do better. There are still many patients who cannot be treated or cured. By connecting different disciplines (for instance: laboratory and clinic), but also by seeking connection outside the metabolic field, we can expand our knowledge and generate innovative ideas; all with the common goal of achieving a better future for our patients.

In the 6 plenary sessions, 14 parallel sessions, 3 update lecturers, 1 educational session, and the 606 posters accepted, we asked all lecturers and authors to incorporate the theme Building Bridges. Especially, those lecturers who are not active in the metabolic field succeeded in connecting their field of research with the metabolic field and creating new ideas for the audience. The articles in this edition of the Journal of Inherited Metabolic Disease will hopefully inspire the readers to seek connection and come up with innovative ideas.

The Garrod Award 2019 for the best clinical study in the Journal of Inherited Disease was presented to Johannes Häberle for his study on urea cycle disorders: of ammonia, dialysis, and future directions of management. The Komrower lecture with the title From fatty acid oxidation to riboflavin ‐ Make metabolites great again was presented by Christine Vianey‐Saban.

The organization of the SSIEM 2019 Annual Symposium would have been impossible without the help and support of the Local Organizing Committee, Scientific Committee, the SSIEM Council, and the PCO. Because of this great collaboration, we succeeded to build bridges.

For a full impression of the congress, go to https://ssiem2019.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/SSIEM-2019-report-FINAL.pdf.

I hope that you will all keep safe during this COVID‐19 pandemic and that we will soon be able to meet again.

在Journal of Inherited Metabolic Disease 的这一特刊中，读者可以找到 2019 年 9 月 3 日至 6 日在荷兰鹿特丹举行的 SSIEM 2019 年度研讨会上的讲座文章集。研讨会的组织是阿姆斯特丹大学医学中心、拉德堡德大学医学中心和伊拉斯姆斯大学医学中心的共同努力。2019 年年会打破了所有记录，参会人数达到 3017 名，注册人来自 86 个国家。

2019 年年会的总主题是“搭建桥梁”。一个非常适合鹿特丹市的主题。鹿特丹以不断自我更新和寻求创新而著称。建立桥梁并寻求与世界其他地方的联系是鹿特丹的基因。

寻求联系正是我们 2019 年研讨会的目标。代谢领域知道许多专业领域。多年来，这些不同的领域取得了巨大的成就，我们患者的未来有了很大的改善，但我们必须做得更好。仍有许多患者无法治疗或治愈。通过连接不同学科（例如：实验室和诊所），同时也通过寻找代谢领域之外的联系，我们可以扩展我们的知识并产生创新的想法；所有人的共同目标是为我们的患者创造更美好的未来。

在6次全体会议、14次平行会议、3名更新讲师、1次教育会议、接受606张海报的过程中，我们要求所有讲师和作者都纳入了Building Bridges这个主题。尤其是那些不活跃在代谢领域的讲师，成功地将他们的研究领域与代谢领域联系起来，为听众创造了新的想法。本期《遗传性代谢病杂志》的文章有望激发读者寻求联系并提出创新想法。

Johannes Häberle 获得了 2019 年遗传病杂志最佳临床研究 Garrod 奖，以表彰他对尿素循环障碍：氨、透析和未来管理方向的研究。Komrower 讲座的标题是从脂肪酸氧化到核黄素——让代谢物再次变得伟大，由 Christine Vianey-Saban 主讲。

如果没有当地组委会、科学委员会、SSIEM 理事会和 PCO 的帮助和支持，SSIEM 2019 年年会的组织是不可能的。由于这种伟大的合作，我们成功地建立了桥梁。

如需对大会的完整印象，请访问 https://ssiem2019.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/SSIEM-2019-report-FINAL.pdf。

我希望你们在 COVID-19 大流行期间都能保持安全，我们很快就能再次见面。