Abstract Guidelines

***The Abstract Submission Portal is now CLOSED***

Deadline for submission:  Friday 8 January 2021, 23.59 (AEST). Please ensure you have read the guidelines provided below to familiarise yourself the process and requirements. 

Submitted abstracts must represent original work that has not been previously published. The Spine Society of Australia expect that the author will present the material and scientific data appearing in the submitted abstract, upon acceptance by the Scientific Committee. The data must not be modified or updated for the presentation without the prior written approval of the Scientific Secretary. 

The Review Committee will select abstracts for either an oral podium presentation or a poster presentation (unless the author indicates a specific preference for a poster presentation only). 

Podium Presentations

Podium presentations will be 6-minute oral presentations in English with allocated question time of 4-minutes.

Posters 

Posters at the Spine Society ASM will be displayed in both paper/cloth and electronic format. Instructions will be forwarded upon acceptance of a poster. Authors must be in attendance to hang their poster. 

Electronic, or e-posters, must be submitted by Friday 12 March 2021 and will be judged on style, content and scientific merit. The posters awarded the highest scores will be selected in a short oral presentation on the final day of the conference. Further details will be made upon acceptance of an abstract. 

Instructions to submit an abstract

  • Abstracts must be submitted using the abstract template. Click here to download the template
  • Author details and affiliation MUST NOT be included on the uploaded document
  • Abstracts must have a 300 word maximum
  • All abbreviations must be defined in the body of the abstract
  • Do not include references in the abstract text
  • Authors should update the word count at the end of the abstract
  • No tables or graphs are to be included in the abstract.

Abstracts must adhere to the following layout (using the template provided):

Introduction          
Provide a clear statement of the aims or purpose of the study.

Methods
Give a brief description of the study design, population or specimen preparation, data collection and processing.

Results          
Only data collected and processed prior to the abstract being submitted will be accepted. Important statistical results (such as confidence intervals, p- values or correlation coefficients) should be included.

Conclusions          
What does the study show? Make simple statements that are supported by the evidence shown in your results.

*All presenters must register for a minimum of one day of the conference by the Early Bird Deadline for registration (1 March 2021) or the presentation will be withdrawn from the program.

Presentation Awards

Presenters of successful abstracts will be in the running for the 2021 Spine Society Awards totalling $16,000. Awards include:
  • Spinal Research Award – $10,000 for the best spinal research paper submitted & presented at the conference
  • Best Paper Award - $2,000 for the best paper presented at the conference
  • Best Poster Award - $1,000 for the best poster presented at the conference
  • Alastair Robson Award - $1,000 for most outstanding contribution by a clinician/s in clinical practice
  • The Rob Johnston Award - $1,000 for the best paper presented by a surgical trainee
  • The Clayton Adam Award - $1,000 for the best paper presented by a junior research scientist

For further information on the Spine Society of Australia Awards, click here.

Declaration of Interest

All authors (including all co-authors) must complete a declaration of interest. The sources and value of all funds used to conduct the study must be declared.

On completing the abstract submission you will receive an Abstract ID number and details on how to complete the disclosure responsibilities, which MUST be completed by all authors associated with the paper by Friday 22 January 2021. Failure of any author to complete the declaration will result in the paper’s withdrawal from the program. It is the responsibility of the presenting author to ensure that all co-authors have complied with the declaration requirements.

Early Career Participant Scholarships

Follow the link for further information regarding Early Career Scholarships. Priority for Scholarships will be given to applicants who have submitted an abstract for consideration for an oral or poster presentation for the ASM. Scholarship applications close midnight AEDT Friday 30 July 2021 (deadline extended).

For any enquiries, please contact the Conference Secretariat via email: ssa2021@dcconferences.com.au or phone: +61 2 9954 4400.

Important Dates

Registrations are open


SSA 2021 Virtual Conference
Friday 26 November -
Sunday 28 November 2021

Conference Secretariat

DC Conference & Association Management
Suite 103, Level 1, 3-5 West Street
North Sydney NSW 2060

PO Box 637
North Sydney NSW 2059

P  +61 2 9954 4400
E  ssa2021@dcconferences.com.au

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