October 2025 IACFS/ME Conference

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SAVE THE DATE!

17th Medical and Scientific Conference

Nova Southeastern University, Davie Campus

Miami/ Fort Lauderdale, Florida, USA

October 22 - 25, 2025

Call for abstracts/ workshop proposals: Anticipated Early 2025


Mark your calendars to join us October 2025 for our International Medical and Conference to be held in Miami/Fort Lauderdale in Florida, USA. This event is co-sponsored by the Institute for Neuro-Immune Medicine at Nova Southeastern University.

We anticipate an exciting, informative program including:

  • Research presentations focusing on new, unpublished data
  • Workshops covering clinical and research topics
  • Poster sessions
  • Exciting lectures from our Plenary/ Keynote speakers
  • Ample time to meet and network with your colleagues
We welcome suggestions on possible topics, speakers, workshops or organizations that you would like to see at the meeting. E-mail your ideas to iacfsmeorg@gmail.com.

We expect the meeting will run from approximately 9 AM to 5 PM, Wednesday to Friday and end at 3 PM on Saturday. A conference program will be posted on our website by summer 2025. There is an optional evening banquet on Friday night.

The conference will focus on the biomedical, public health, and behavioral aspects of ME/CFS and associated comorbidities. A portion of the meeting will also be devoted to infection-associated conditions like long COVID which have triggers, pathophysiologic mechanisms, and symptoms similar to ME/CFS.

Attendees at IACFS/ME conferences are primarily biomedical and behavioral professionals, including clinicians, researchers, public health experts, and educators. We especially encourage participation by professionals from outside the United States and group traditionally underrepresented in medicine/ science. People affected by ME/CFS and their supporters are also welcome to attend.

IACFS/ME Members received discounted registration fees: considering joining us today for this and other benefits! For a taste of our meetings, see our 2023 Conference information page, 2022 Conference Summaries/ information page and 2021 Conference Summaries.


Travel and Accommodation Information

Fort Lauderdale is located on the southeastern coast of Florida, 30 miles from Miami and right around the corner from its local beaches and boating canals. Multiple airports including Fort Lauderdale/ Hollywood International Airport, Miami International Airport and Palm Beach International Airport, service the area and the city is also accessible via car, rail, water taxi and ferry. The city and surrounding locales are popular and scenic destinations on Florida's spectacular Gold Coast and the Atlantic Ocean.

IACFS/ME has arranged discounted rates for conference attendees at the following 3 hotels: La Quinta Inn, Hampton Inn, and Hyatt Place. The hotels are a 10-15 minute drive/ ride to conference facilities, close to each other, and near restaurants/ shops. Free breakfast, Wi-Fi, and complimentary parking are available at each location. To obtain the discounted rate, the La Quinta can be booked using this link. The Hampton and Hyatt links will be made available in the near future.

Here is some basic information about the Institute for Neuro-Immune Medicine at Nova Southeastern University, the local area, Miami and Florida. Unique attractions in Florida include Walt Disney World, the Florida Keys, and Everglades National Park. Latin-American culture, restaurants, and music also flourish in the area.


Continuing Medical Education

Continuing Medical Education credits will be available for eligible program components. Stony Brook University in New York is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education to provide continuing medical education to physicians and will designate the number of AMA PRA Category 1 credit (s) TM awarded for physician participation.


Volunteer for the Conference

These activities are carried out online in the weeks to months before the conference. Contact us at iacfsmeorg@gmail.com if interested.

a. Help us peer-review abstracts and workshop proposals: This is an especially valuable learning experience for junior clinicians/ researchers, trainees, and students. Learning how reviewers choose and rate abstracts can increase the quality of your own work. Peer reviewers read abstracts ahead of time and then meet 2-3 times to discuss abstracts.

b. Help us plan/ implement the conference: Are there workshops, speakers, timely topics you would like to see at the conference? Are there networking or social events you think attendees would enjoy participating in? Every 4-6 weeks, a meeting is held to discuss conference activities.


Sponsorship

Every conference, generous individuals, non-profit groups, agencies, foundations, and businesses have helped us create a successful meeting. If you or your organization are interested in publicizing your support of ME/CFS clinical care and research to our community, please complete our Contact Us form or e-mail us at iacfsmeorg@gmail.com.


Livestreaming and Video Recording

Arrangements for livestreaming and/or video recording are currently being discussed. We will share more information in future announcements.


Look Out for Future Announcements and Updates!

If this e-mail did not arrive in your primary e-mail Inbox, please make adjustments to ensure it does in the future. We do not want you to miss any important updates.

Follow us on our LinkedIn page!


This email was sent on behalf of International Association for Chronic Fatigue Syndrome/ Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (IACFS/ME) located at ATTN: Dr. Fred Friedberg, IACFS/ME, P.O. Box 583, Stony Brook, NY 11790...If you have questions or comments concerning this email contact International Association for Chronic Fatigue Syndrome/ Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (IACFS/ME) at iacfsmeorg@gmail.com.
 
The conference will focus on the biomedical, public health, and behavioral aspects of ME/CFS and associated comorbidities. A portion of the meeting will also be devoted to infection-associated conditions like long COVID which have triggers, pathophysiologic mechanisms, and symptoms similar to ME/CFS.
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Er, what behavioural aspects?
 
Recent ones included a fully online one due to the pandemic in 2021 and 2022. Some of us on the forum attended the 2022 one free as officially sanctioned reporters and wrote up quite a lot of the talks.
IACFSME 2022 Virtual Medical Conference: Day 1 Workshops: 27 July (9 am to 5 pm EDT)
I found the ones from Hanson's team at Cornell particularly good. I was also dismayed that some quacks were given space for poster presentations.

I'm not sure what has happened in more recent years, as I think it was in person attendance only, so none of us could go.
 
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/iacf...re-amazing-abstract-submission-iacfsme-vwk3c/

IACFS/ME 2025 Conference: Prepare an Amazing Abstract for Submission!

International Association for Chronic Fatigue Syndrome/Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (IACFS/ME)
277 followers


March 12, 2025


Here are some tips to keep in mind when preparing your research abstract for submission to the 2025 IACFS/ME Research and Clinical Conference. Remember that the deadline for submissions is May 5, 2025, at 5 PM New York City time.

Click here to submit your work!

Click here to find out more about the conference!

These tips are based on IACFS/ME Board Members' years of experience reviewing abstracts for our and other conferences/ journals. These ideas may also be helpful if you are submitting to other conferences or are readying your work for journal submission.

Overall: The maximum word count for IACFS/ME abstracts is 300 words. Most journal abstracts also fall into this range.



  • If using acronyms, do not assume that everyone knows what you mean. One exception would be "ME/CFS." Otherwise, write the word out completely the first time it appears followed by the acronym in parentheses, e.g., "mast cell activation syndrome (MCAS)." You may then use the acronym in the rest of the abstract.
  • Assure that the sections of your abstract work together. For example, do not state that your project addresses issue X under Objective(s) but then provide no findings concerning issue X in the Results section. (Yes, that actually has happened in talks, posters, and articles, although not necessarily at our conferences.)


Title:



  • Adjust your title so it is 15 words or less. Shorter titles are easier to read and understand.
  • Consider placing the result or conclusion of your study in the title; one example is "Two symptoms can accurately identify post-exertional malaise in myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome."
  • A description of the type of study could also be considered: "Observational Study of Repeat Immunoadsorption (RIA) in Post-COVID ME/CFS Patients with Elevated ß2-Adrenergic Receptor Autoantibodies—An Interim Report." Other examples of such terms are "randomized controlled trial", "case-control study", "pilot study."


Introduction:



  • Briefly inform the reader the background behind your study and why the general question/ issue you address is important.


Objective(s):



  • This is the more narrow focus of your project. For example, the general Introduction might state that there is a lack of knowledge about how patients with Long COVID react to a cognitive task. But the specific objective might be "To compare the type and intensity of symptoms experienced by healthy people vs. people with Long COVID after a memory task."


Methods:



  • Describe the methods in enough detail so that readers have a general idea of how your study was conducted.
  • If appropriate for your study design, please include sample size numbers, whether the number of study participants involved or the number of biological specimens you examined.
  • For studies involving participants affected by ME/CFS, Long COVID, or conditions where multiple diagnostic definitions exists, please note the criteria used (e.g., 2003 Canadian Consensus Criteria, 2015 Institute of Medicine) or method (e.g., self-reported diagnosis, clinician diagnosed) used to identify participants.
  • The main outcome measures should be included in this section.
  • Briefly, note what statistical methods were used for analysis and what p-value or other statistic was used to define statistical significance.


Results:



  • You may have more results than you have word count to include. In that situation, select the few most relevant from your study for the abstract. During your oral or poster presentation, you can elaborate on the results.
  • Include effect sizes and statistical significance. For example, do not merely write "There were significant differences between cases and controls in some immunological parameters." Instead, write "Levels of interleukin-1 (IL-1) and IL-4 were significantly higher in cases vs. controls (respectively, 5.0 vs. 3.2 pg/ml, p<0.001; 7.5 vs. 2.0 pg/ml, p<0.01)." If results are not statistically significant, you can be brief. "No significant differences were observed between cases and controls."


Conclusions:



  • Assure that your conclusions answer the question or issue you stated in Objective and that the Results support your Conclusions.
  • You may want to include a sentence about how your work impacts future research, clinical care, public health, or healthcare policy depending on your study.


Funding:



  • Please note any organizations that funded your work directly, including a grant number if applicable. If no one funded the study, write "None."


Conflicts of Interest:



  • Do any of the authors have substantial interests that could impact their design, analysis, or interpretation of the study? Are there important non-financial interests also (e.g., strong ideological views)? Disclose who is conflicted and in what manner. If there are no conflicts of interest, write "None."
  • Note that if you are not sure whether to disclose an interest, it is better to disclose it.
  • Be aware that possible conflicts of interest does not mean that one is present. Disclosures allow conference attendees to judge for themselves whether any bias exists.


Do Not Include:



  • References/ citations to articles
  • Acknowledgements
  • Institutional review board and ethical approval information


These items can be included in slides for a talk, a poster, or a journal article but do not need to be included on abstracts submitted for this conference.


What has been your experience submitting abstracts? What useful tips and tricks have you learned? Share your experiences by commenting!
 
IACFS/ME are asking if their conference should be virtual. There's also a space to make a comment about what the conference. I took the opportunity to ask them not to provide a platform for pseudoscience.

Dear IACFS/ME Supporters,

The IACFS/ME Board and Nova Southeastern University (NSU) are enthusiastic about this year's conference and have been planning for it to be held on NSU's campus since late 2024. However, IACFS/ME is also aware that changes in support and funding of research in the United States of America as well as concerns about traveling to/ within the USA may impact attendance at our October 22- 25, 2025 Conference in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

To ensure that as many people who wish to participate in the conference can do so, please help us by indicating your attendance preferences via this 1-item, anonymous poll. Additionally, we want to hear from you if you had not intended to attend in-person but would do so if the meeting is held virtually. This poll also includes a few optional, demographic items to help inform conference planning.

Click to vote on the format of the conference (in-person vs. virtual)!

(If the conference is held in-person, livestreaming or recording is already being considered so there is no need to vote on a hybrid conference.)
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From: Dr. Marc-Alexander Fluks

Source: IACFS/ME Conference 2025
Date: April 7, 2025
URL:
https://www.iacfsme.org/2023-virtual-conference-abstract-call-copy-copy/


2025 IACFS/ME Conference
------------------------
October 22- 25, 2025
Nova Southeastern University, Fort Lauderdale, FL, USA
Submit Your Work By: May 5, 2025, 5:00 PM EDT (New York City, USA)
(...)

Registration for meeting begins July 2025.
(...)

We especially welcome submissions that:
* Address treatment for ME/CFS and related conditions
* Compare ME/CFS to Long COVID or other diseases
* Exploit technological advances to support remote trials (e.g. wearable
technology, home-based testing)
* Seek to understand infection-associated chronic conditions (IACCs,
e.g., multiple sclerosis, Q-fever fatigue syndrome, etc.)
* Explore overall pathophysiology of ME/CFS and/or post-exertional
malaise
* Include study participants from a broad range of backgrounds

(...)
 
Hutan said:
I took the opportunity to ask them not to provide a platform for pseudoscience.
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Is there a suggestion that they are going to entertain pseudoscience?

I looked at some previous agendas and it looked like there was some (e.g. KDM). But there were also a lot of student presentations, which I think is good/fine.

Since this is in Nancy Klim*s place, I do have some concern because see has hired some quack-ish people for her institute.
Functional, integrative, acupuncture, food as medicine, herbology, etc.

https://www.nova.edu/nim/clinic/team.html
 
NOTICE: 2025 IACFS/ME Conference Changed to Virtual Format!

October 22 - 25, 2025 Online

Abstract and Workshop Submission Deadline

Extended to May 19, 2025

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Dear IACFS/ME Members and Supporters,

Thank you to all everyone who participated in our recent survey! We also want to thank Dr. Nancy Klimas, Dr. Irina Rozenfeld and the staff at Nova Southeastern University along with our sponsors for their dedication, effort, and time helping us plan this conference.

Based on your responses and comments, we have decided to switch this year's conference from an in-person to an all-virtual format. We believe this change will help those facing funding, travel, and other challenges. Because of the switch to a virtual format, the deadline for abstract and workshop submissions will be extended to May 19, 2025. Submit your work here!

In the future, we will be sharing more information about how to attend and participate in the conference. The format will be similar to our 2022 conference, when we successfully used a combination of the Zoom and Virtual Poster Session platforms. For general information about the conference, please see this webpage. If you have any questions, e-mail us at iacfsmeorg@gmail.com.

We recognize that seeing your colleagues and meeting new people is a valuable aspect of in-person conferences. Towards this end, the Board, NSU staff, and our sponsors will be collaborating to create experiences that promote attendee interaction. Have you been to a virtual conference where the interactive components were superb? Do you have ideas for how to promote engagement among attendees? Share them with us via this 1-item Google form.

Thank you for your attention and we look forward to you participation in the Conference!

IACFS/ME

https://twitter.com/user/status/1910693586963746945
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Sasha said:
Maybe it will be cheaper now that its online. Patients should be able to attend free or for no more than a fiver to cover any additional streaming costs, IMO. So many are impoverished by their illness.
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I filled in the survey and voted for all online and suggested it should be free for pwME.

I attended parts of the virtual conference a few years ago at no cost as an official 'reporter' for S4ME along with several other members. If I recall correctly, several other members paid to attend. The fees even for pwME were quite high. I would not pay to attend, especially as I only have the stamina for a small proportion of the sessions.
 
From email newsletter:

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2025 Virtual Research and Clinical Conference
October 22 - 25, 2025
Call for Abstracts

Deadline extended: June 11, 2025, 5 PM New York City (USA) EDT time

Due to multiple requests, we are re-opening the call for research abstracts for a limited time, from now until June 11, 2025, at 5 PM New York City (USA) time. If you missed the first deadline or have recent work you wish to be considered for presentation, please submit your work now.

Submit Your Abstract Now!

If there are any questions, please complete our Contact Us form. Researchers who are new to the ME/CFS field, early in their career, from outside the United States, and from groups less represented in the medical/ scientific workforce are encouraged to submit.

We especially welcome abstract and workshop submissions that:
  • Address treatment for ME/CFS and related conditions
  • Compare ME/CFS to Long COVID or other diseases
  • Exploit technological advances to support remote trials (e.g. wearable technology, home-based testing
  • Seek to understand infection-associated chronic conditions (IACCs, e.g., multiple sclerosis, Q-fever fatigue syndrome, etc.) and their relationships with each other
  • Explore overall pathophysiology of ME/CFS and/or post-exertional malaise
  • Include study participants from a broad range of backgrounds
Research which has not been published yet will be prioritized although we will also consider "encore" presentations on a case-by-case basis. Carefully thought-out research protocols will also be considered. For protocols, Results section should describe what results are expected or may reveal whereas the Conclusion section should relay what the practical impact of the research may be on scientific progress, clinical care, public health policy, medical education, or other areas.

Submitted abstracts will be reviewed. If selected, you will be asked to present a 12-15 minute talk or to participate in a poster session. Notifications will be sent out in July.

For general information about the conference, see the main 2025 Conference webpage, our 2023 conference schedule and 2022 and 2021 meeting summaries.
 
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