Dear Colleagues,

We are pleased to welcome you to the 2020 Osteoarthritis Research Society International (OARSI) World Congress in Vienna, Austria. The annual OARSI Congress is a multidisciplinary global forum for all those interested in OA research and treatment from academia and industry, including basic and clinical research scientists, rheumatologists, orthopedic surgeons, radiologists, physiatrists, physical therapists and other allied health professionals, methodologists, and policy makers.

Highlights of the 2020 program include a plenary session on the Gut microbiome and OA and What rare diseases can tell us about OA. The opening night keynote lecture will be delivered by Dr. Joseph Smolen on the Lessons learned from target discoveries in arthritis for osteoarthritis. Interact with experts in specific areas of basic and clinical science through ticketed breakfast workshops. Topics include, among others, “Rapid MRI”, “Functional Genomics”, “Clinical methodology” and “Guidelines and recommendation in treating hand OA”. The great debate will be on whether “Joint tissues impact on nerves or Nerves impact on joint tissues”. As in previous years, there will be pre-congress workshops and sessions featuring the highest rated young investigator abstracts, the year-in-review, as well as poster tours led by experts in the field. The Young Investigator Committee will again host the popular Mentorship Session.

Due to its great success of last year we again will recognize the highest rated abstracts in 12 broad categories, regardless of stage of career. Details are provided in the abstract submission instructions. Additional congress awards programs include Travel scholarships, Young Investigator highest rated abstracts, Clinical Science Award, Basic Science Award, and Lifetime Achievement Award.

Attend this meeting to join a global network of individuals from a broad range of disciplines, all working toward a better understanding of OA with the goals of preventing, managing and curing the disease through state-of-the-art research to improve the lives of the >300 million worldwide with OA! We look forward to seeing you and learning from each other during OARSI 2020 in Vienna!

Ingrid Meulenbelt, PhD
2020 Congress Chair

Danny Chan, BSc, MSc, PhD
Abstract Chair