ISCD is pleased to offer the opportunity for individuals and teams to submit Abstracts and Clinical Cases for the 2027 Musculoskeletal Health Conference. Abstracts selected for inclusion in the Conference will be invited to display their poster in person as well as on our website. Award recipients will also develop a short video presentation of their abstract for all attendees to view.

Submit Abstract

Submit Clinical Case

• Abstracts open – September 1, 2026
• Abstracts close – December 1, 2026
• Acceptance & Award Winner Notifications – January 5, 2027
• Deadline for receipt of primary author's disclosure and acceptance of policies/deadlines – January 15, 2027
• Abstracts/Videos due from the Primary author for placement on the website – March 1, 2027

ISCD encourages anyone involved in Skeletal Health Assessment to submit an abstract or a clinical case. We are specifically encouraging Young Investigators to consider a submission. 

Clinician, Technologist, & Research Abstracts (including instrument development, other methodological studies, and research-based best practices) should describe the methods used to carry out the research, identify variables and sample size, identify protocols and instruments used for evaluation, and describe data analysis. Research must be completed before abstract submission. All Abstracts will be submitted through the online submission portal by December 1, 2026. Selected abstracts will be made into posters, and award winners will also make a video presentation. The committee is NOT looking for full manuscripts, but sufficient information to demonstrate quality research and results. Submissions may include:

• Summary (250-word limit) - Required
• Purposes/Aims 
• Rationale/Conceptual Basis/Background 
• Methods 
• Results 
• Implications 

Clinical Cases are designed to show principles of quality skeletal health assessment, artifacts, issues with analysis, reporting, and interpretation. Submissions in this category should address/include the following:

• Novelty. Cases should be new or out of the usual, conveying information that meeting attendees do not frequently see in general practice.
• Images must be of high quality and resolution. Viewers must be able to see the areas of interest clearly. Labels should be used as appropriate.
• Cases that provide educational value. Viewers should be able to gain knowledge by viewing the cases even if the subject matter is not in their usual area of practice.
• Cases that demonstrate overall merit are well-written and easily understandable to all meeting attendees.
• Cases must be free of any Patient Health Information (PHI). (Any case containing such information will be destroyed).

All Clinical Cases will be submitted to the DXA Atlas Submission Portal. Any submission to the Atlas from September 1 until December 1, 2026 will be considered.

Awards will be selected for the categories below, and submitters will be asked to choose one category for the committee to consider for Best in Class.  

• Best Clinician Abstract
• Best Technologist Abstract
• Best Researcher Abstract
• Best Clinical Case Submission

Those selected for awards will be asked to create a short video presentation for inclusion on the Conference website. Those selected for awards who submit a video presentation will receive complimentary registration for the Conference.

Young Investigators are encouraged to submit abstracts in any category. Submitters will be asked as part of the submission if the primary author is a Young Investigator and may be considered for a Young Investigator Award within the submitted category. Young Investigators are defined as:

• Faculty members no more than 5 years out from completion of all training (fellowship or post-doc)
• Fellows
• Residents
• Other individuals involved in research aligned with the ISCD's mission who are within 5 years of completion of training

Qualifications and Eligibility

All authors must adhere to the following when submitting an abstract for the ISCD 2027 Musculoskeletal Health Conference: 

• For scientific studies, the research described in the abstract complies with the guiding principles for experimental procedures written in the Declaration of Helsinki of the World Medical Association and the NIH Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals, 1985, and it refers to the policy established by your Institutional Review Board.
• All primary authors must provide appropriate disclosures through the submission website by January 15, 2027.
• The contact/lead author on the abstract must register for the ISCD PDC and Musculoskeletal Health Conference. Abstracts without a registered author by March 1, 2027, will be withdrawn.
• Authors of an abstract describing a study funded by an organization with a proprietary or financial interest must identify the organization and affirm that they had full access to all the data in the study. By doing so, the authors accept complete responsibility for the integrity and accuracy of the data analysis.
• There is no charge for the submission of abstracts, and there is no limit on the number of abstracts that an author may submit. Each abstract needs to be submitted individually via the online submission process.