Abstract Submissions
We are pleased to announce that the next International Symposium of the World Association of Veterinary Laboratory Diagnosticians – ISWAVLD 202, which brings together over 500 participants from across the globe, will be held from 8-11 December 2027, at the Cape Town International Convention Centre in South Africa.
ISWAVLD is the essential meeting place for all veterinary diagnosticians, biologists, veterinarians, students, and other scientists involved in laboratory diagnostics.
In addition to presenting the latest innovations around diagnostics in all areas of animal health, ISWAVLD 2027 will be convened under the theme “Diagnostics Driving One Health: Innovations from Africa to the World”, bringing veterinary medicine, human medicine, and industry together.
We therefor invite abstract submissions under the themes below, for consideration of bot oral and poster sesions.Presentation Types
- Plenary Presentation: 45-minute presentation, comprising of a 35-minute presentation + 10 minutes for questions.
- Oral Presentation: 20-minute presentation, comprising of a 12-15-minute presentation + 3-5 minutes for questions with an additional 2-4 minutes for venue change.
- Printed Poster Presentations: 2 Dedicated Poster Sessions on 9 December 2027 at 15:45-16:45 and 10 December at 15:35-16:35
- The presenting author will be required to register for the Symposium in order to ensure their abstract(s) is included in the final programme.
- All submissions must be completed electronically via the online submission facility. If you are unable to submit in this manner, please contact the Programme Co-ordinator, Corné Engelbrecht at corne@savetcon.co.za for further information.
- All abstracts must be prepared according to the guidelines provided. Abstracts will only be accepted if submitted within the format and layout guidelines.
- Please note, submitted abstracts will be blind reviewed. Therefore information that identifies authorship (for example, the names of particular institutions or programs) should not be included in the text submitted.
- There is no limit to the number of abstracts that may be submitted by an individual. However, splitting of a body of work into multiple abstracts is discouraged and consolidation into one abstract is preferred.
- Authors are required to acknowledge that by submitting an abstract, permission is automatically given for the abstract (if approved) to be made available in the symposium proceedings, the on the website and via the mobile app, and possibly published more broadly.
- At the discretion of the Scientific Committee, a maximum of two abstracts may be accepted into the scientific programme where there is the same lead author.
Please make sure that you do not add to the abstract template the following items: title of the abstract, authors’ names, affiliations, figures and/or tables. The title, authors and affiliations will be added automatically based on the information you have inserted in the submission platform. The abstract text should simply contain (you can keep or remove the chapter headings (Background, Objectives, …) at your convenience):
- Title: The title should be concise and clearly reflect the content of your abstract.
- Introduction: shortly indicate the rationale of the study
- Methods: include the setting for the study, the subjects, and the type of statistical analysis; if references are needed, they should be given in the text
- Results: present as clearly as possible the outcome of the study and statistical significance if appropriate
- Discussion: Interpret the results and discuss their implications. Explain how your findings contribute to the field or address the research question. Discuss any limitations of your study.
- Conclusion: Summarize the main conclusions of your research. State the practical or theoretical implications of your work.
It is the author’s responsibility to submit a correct abstract. Any errors in spelling, grammar or scientific fact will be reproduced as submitted by the author.
Only fully completed presenter profiles and abstract submissions marked as final will be reviewed.
Authors must submit original results that have not been published elsewhere.
- All abstracts must be submitted in English and via the online system.
- No e-mail submissions will be permitted.
- All submitted abstracts must comply with the submission guidelines and will be peer-reviewed by an international panel of experts in the field.
- If you are submitting more than one abstract you must use the same login for each abstract.
- As submitting author, you will receive all communications regarding the submitted abstract(s).
- The maximum length of an abstract is 300 words. Abstracts may also include one table or figure. Please ensure that research findings are described to a level sufficient for reviewers to make an informed decision on scientific quality. Abstracts that fail to meet these criteria will be rejected.
- Abstracts must be free of typographical and grammatical errors.
- Standard abbreviations may be used for common terms only. Otherwise, any abbreviation should be given in brackets after the first full use of the word. Abbreviations may be used in the title, provided the name in full is outlined in the body of the abstract.
- You will be asked to provide a short biography (up to 150 words) with your submission.
- You will be asked to nominate your preference for poster or oral presentation.
- Please include degrees or professional titles (e.g. Dr, Prof., etc).
- It is the author’s responsibility to ensure the title, author and affiliation details entered in the paper submission site are correct and exactly as they should be published on the abstract and all Symposium materials.
- Do not include author names in the title or body of your abstract – these are entered online during the submission process.
- You can alter your abstract at any time up to the submission deadline – after this date changes will not be possible.
- Abstracts will be reviewed and authors notified of the outcome of the review process.
- There is no limit to the number of abstracts on which an author may be listed.
- Please note that the presenting author must register in full to attend and present the abstract at the Symposium.
The ISWAVLD 2027 Scientific Programme Committee will review all submitted abstracts and assess them in relation to quality and relevance to the Symposium themes.
Notifications of acceptance for first round submissions will be sent via email to the presenting author by 30 September 2026.
Abstracts submitted for oral presentations that cannot be accommodated within the programme will be considered and reviewed for potential acceptance as a poster.
Where an abstract for a paper is accepted, revisions or changes of emphasis to match the Symposium discipline may be requested as there might be an opportunity to submit an extended abstract or full paper to relevant journals directly.
The Symposium Secretariat will not be held responsible for abstract submissions not received via the website or for submission errors caused by internet service outages, hardware or software delays, power outages or unforeseen events.
