Abstract session at AIDS 2008 in Mexico. © IAS

The majority of sessions at the conference will be presentations of original research or descriptions of policy and programs. These are chosen from short descriptions that people submit called abstracts. The top scoring abstracts are grouped together by topic as oral presentations in which five or more speakers present their work for a short period of time each, usually with slides. Other abstracts are chosen to be presented visually as a poster. Some posters are selected to be in poster discussion sessions where presenters can talk about their work; and other posters are shown in exhibition and viewing sessions. A great number of abstracts are accepted to be published in the conference CD-ROM but not delivered as orals or posters.

Abstracts are grouped under one of six scientific tracks:

Track A: Basic Science
Track B: Clinical Sciences
Track C: Epidemiology and Prevention Sciences
Track D: Social and Behavioural Sciences
Track E: Economics, Operations Research, Care and Health Systems
Track F: Policy, Law, Human Rights and Political Science

Those who want to present their work at the conference need to complete the online abstract application form on the AIDS 2010 website from 01 November 2009 until 10 February 2010. To submit an abstract you will first have to create a conference profile. Around 10,600 abstracts were submitted to AIDS 2008 and 7,796 were selected, therefore you should make sure to develop a good quality abstract to help your chances of getting accepted.

Note: There will be a separate selection process in the spring for very recent research with important findings to be presented as Late-Breaker Abstracts. Submissions open 10 April 2010 and close 20 May 2010.

Resources

If you have never submitted an abstract before, or feel you need some help writing your abstract, there is an excellent resource written called the 3rd Edition of the Toolkit on Conference Abstracts & Presentations, available in English, French, Spanish, Portuguese and Russian on the CCABA (Coalition on Children Affected by AIDS) web site.

The International AIDS Society also coordinates an Abstract Mentor Programme for first-time abstract submitters and those who need assistance.

You might also want to read abstracts from past conferences from the International AIDS Society website.

For more information on how to submit,  see Tip Sheet: Abstract Submissions

Contact information: abstracts@aids2010.org