Deadline for submissions is 28 September 2026

Overview

The Australian Pain Society (APS) Annual Scientific Meeting, in partnership with the International Symposium on Paediatric Pain (ISPP), invites submissions for topical workshops/symposium and Practical workshops for the APS–ISPP 2027 scientific program.

The meeting will include two separate submission pathways:

1. Poster and Free Paper Submissions
   For individual abstract submissions, including posters and free oral papers.
2. Symposium, Topical Workshop and Practical Workshop Submissions
   For proposed 90-minute sessions involving multiple presenters, facilitators, or structured workshop formats.

Please ensure you submit through the correct portal.

Submissions are welcomed from clinicians, researchers, educators, policy makers, people with lived experience, and others working across all domains of pain care and pain science across the lifespan.

Conference Theme

The theme of the meeting is Pain Across the Lifespan, with a strong focus on innovation in pain science and care. The program will span the full continuum of pain—from infancy through to older adulthood—highlighting biological, psychological, and social dimensions across settings and contexts.

Submissions should reflect the breadth of pain research and care, including clinical practice, service delivery, education, and policy, and may range from basic science through to real-world implementation.

There will be a strong emphasis on:

• Translating evidence into practice 
• Addressing complexity and long-term outcomes 
• Improving equity and access to care 
• Supporting patients, families, and clinicians across diverse contexts

Poster and Free Paper Submission Guidelines

Poster and free paper submissions must include a Title and a 300 word abstract that clearly outlines:

• Background and aims 
• Methods 
• Results 
• Conclusions and discussion

Authors must include the names, affiliations, and country details of all authors and identify the presenting author.

Symposium, Topical Workshop and Practical Workshop Submission Guidelines

Symposium, topical workshop, and practical workshop submissions must include a a session overview abstract of up to 300 words describing:

• The problem, topic, or need being addressed and why it is important to pain care or pain science
• The aims and objectives of the session
• A summary of what participants can expect from the session
• The intended format and level of audience engagement
• For practical workshops, the specific skills participants will develop, practise, or apply

Each submission must include:

• Session title
• Names, affiliations, and country details of all presenters or facilitators
• A nominated Chair for symposium or topical workshop submissions
• A nominated lead facilitator for practical workshop submissions
• A brief description of each presenter or facilitator’s role in the session

Individual presentation abstracts for each speaker will be requested following acceptance of a symposium, topical workshop, or practical workshop and may be published on the conference website or in the program materials.

Terms and Conditions

• Only online abstracts will be accepted.
• Submitting author must be the person who will be presenting the paper at the meeting, substitutes will not be accepted
• Submitting author accepts full responsibility for the accuracy of all content
• Submitting author assures that the abstract is an original work that has not been previously published
• Poster Presenters will be required to attend their poster during the scheduled poster walk around sessions. 
• If your submission is accepted, all presenters will be expected to register for a minimum of one day of the conference by the Earlybird Deadline of Friday 29 January 2027. Please note, there is no funding, discounted or complimentary registrations available for submitted presenters. 

Themes

Submitting authors will be asked to select from one of the below themes.

• Acute pain 
• Cancer pain 
• Chronic pain 
• Musculoskeletal pain 
• Neuropathic pain 
• Nociplastic pain
• Visceral pain
• Paediatric pain 
• Older adult pain 
• Pain across the lifespan 
• Headache & migraine 
• Pain mechanisms & translational science 
• Digital health & technology innovation
• Psychological & behavioural approaches 
• Rehabilitation & physical therapies
• Interdisciplinary pain care 
• Lived experience & co-design 
• Health services, policy & implementation 
• Emerging therapies & controversies in pain 
• Education & workforce development 
• Indigenous health 
• Equity, diversity and inclusion
• Implementation science and health services
• Other