The scientific program includes Plenary sessions, Symposia, “Meet the Professor” sessions, Free paper sessions, Poster sessions, Consensus symposia and Company sponsored symposia.

Plenary sessions
A select number of highly relevant topics, given by recognized leaders in the respective fields, have been chosen for plenary sessions.

Symposia
Symposia will be the cornerstones of the congress; three to five world experts will discuss relevant topics in order to give the audience a broad perspective on state of the art issues related to the main topic. Open discussion with attendees will be stimulated after the presentations.

Meet the Professor sessions
The Meet the Professor breakfast sessions will provide a golden opportunity for young doctors and researchers to interact with experts in their fields and to learn firsthand, the latest innovations. Each session will be limited as to the number of participants. Tickets for each session will be available at the registration desk and issued on a “first come, first served” basis.

Free Paper sessions
Selected papers will be presented for 10 minute oral presentations in parallel sessions.

Poster sessions
The majority of the scientific presentations will be Posters. Presenters must display their posters during the whole meeting. Presenters are requested to stand next to their posters during breaks for discussion with interested attendees. The congress considers this activity as a high priority and as such has secured an additional time period for this discussion.

Consensus symposia
Interactive sessions will be organized in which propositions, standpoints and recommendations on an issue will be presented by four experts. Broad discussion and an open dialogue may lead to (partly) consensus. Since full consensus on issues may not be reached, these meetings can make clear on which points consensus exists and where and why there is divergence.

Company Sponsored symposia
Company sponsored symposia - will focus on topics of interest to both industry and attendees. The International Scientific Committee and the WSPID Board have direct supervision on the content of Company Symposium and all efforts will be made to promote an integral and objective approach to the selected topics.

Awards
Best Paper Award
The Local Scientific Committee will select the “Best paper” presented during the congress. Criteria for selection will be based on the relevance of the research topic and scientific quality of the investigation. The winner will be announced in a special session on the last day of the congress.