For the first time in the Middle East:
Under the patronage of H.H. Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum:
Dubai, Tuesday, April 12, 2016
For the first time in the Middle East, under the patronage of H.H. Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai and UAE Minister of Finance, and supported by Hamdan Medical Award, the 5th Global Spine Congress (GSC) & the 5th World Forum for Spine Research (WFSR) will be opened, concurrently, after tomorrow (Thursday) in Dubai. The 2 events are organized by the OASpine, Switzerland, from 13 till April 16 at the Grand Hyatt Hotel, Dubai, with the participation of 95 speakers, and about 765 scientific papers, of which 300 papers will be presented as posters, along with more than 15 workshops.
About 1,500 neurologists, neurosurgeons, orthopedic specialists and surgeons from 74 countries around the world are expected to attend these big 2 events, which are held with the participation of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons, North American Spine Society, EUROSPINE, European Association of Neurosurgical Societies, Cervical Spine Research Society, Iran Spine Surgeon's Society Africa Spine, Neurosurgical Society of Iran, Pan Arab Spine Society, Pan Arab Orthopaedic Association, Emirates Orthopaedic Society, Kuwait Spine Society, Egyptian Orthopaedic Association, Egyptian Spine Association, and Scoliosis Research Society
On this occasion, Abdullah bin Souqat, a member of the Board of Trustees of Sheikh Hamdan Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Award for Medical Sciences, expressed his pleasure of hosting such world events in Dubai, for the first time in the region. "It goes in line with the directives of H.H. Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum concerning the award's role as a link between the local medical communities in the United Arab Emirates and the prestigious regional and global academic and research institutions", he said.
"This role supports the exerted efforts in the UAE, particularly in the Emirate of Dubai, towards the implementation of the project of establishing Dubai as a global medical tourism destination. Updating healthcare professionals' knowledge and experiences within the UAE in all disciplines is a must to reach our goal, particularly in sub specialties which require special skills such as the orthopedic surgery and neurosurgery", he added.
For his part, Dr. Jeffrey Wang, the GSC chair, said: "We are delighted to be in the Middle East for the 1st time with our flagship event. The GSC is not only the most important academic annual meeting for specialists in that field of surgery, but it is also one of the biggest gatherings of spine surgeons all over the world".
"The congress provides an outstanding platform to exchange ideas, network with spine specialists, and learn about the latest research, techniques, and technologies. I am so happy to hold this year's conference in Dubai, such a magnificent city which is a hub for hosting mega scientific events in the Middle East.", he said.
"Tomorrow's workshops are devoted to topics related to spinal cord injury and tumors. Regarding the GSC, it will focus on the Intervertebral Disc-Biologics through 55 scientific sessions, 8 members-only symposia, 9 OASpine symposia, and 7 scientific symposia for the participated societies", he added.
"Regarding the World Forum for Spine Research, its 8 scientific sessions, for lectures, and 2 scientific sessions, for posters, will highlight the basic sciences related to spine surgery and the novel clinical research in this field", he mentioned.
Also, Dr. Imad Hashim, Consultant neurosurgeon, City Hospital, and the local chair of the organizing committee of the congress, spoke about the most important topics to be discussed including the latest findings in spinal cord treatment, stem cells in spinal cord treatments, new materials for spine bones' healing, fixing spine, and artificial cartilage.
"A highly important workshop by a leading researcher from Canada will be held to discuss the new methods in the treatment of spinal cord in paralyzed cases after falling down from high places or after exposing to accidents. Also, a session is dedicated to young researchers, and the best young searcher will win a conference's award", he added.
It is worth mentioning that the 5th GSC & the 5th WFSR will discuss several important issues such as the degeneration in cervical and lumbar cases, thoracolumbar deformity in adults and adolescent, cervical and thoracolumbar trauma, imaging, minimally invasive spine surgery, surgical complications, non-operative clinical treatments, spine biologics, degeneration of intervertebral discs, back and neck pain.
The number of the participants in these two events exceeds the number of the participants in each scientific meeting previously held by the AOSpine. While, the AOSpine's 1st conference was held in 2009 in the United States, the 2nd one was in Spain in 2011, the 3rd in Hong Kong in 2013, and the 4th in South Africa in 2015. As for the World Forum for Spine Research, its 1st edition held in Japan in 2008, the 2nd in Canada in 2010, the 3rd in Finland in 2013, and the 4th in China in 2014.
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© Press Release 2016