If you are submitting an abstract and are not first author, please create an account on behalf of the first author using their first and last name.

The first author’s name is automatically populated based on the account information.

Abstract Deadlines & Approvals:

ORAL PRESENTATIONS

For those submitting an abstract who would like to be considered for oral presentations at the 2025 MDA Clinical & Scientific Conference, highest priority will be given to those who submit abstracts on or before November 15, 2024. Final deadline for oral presentation consideration is December 31, 2024. All abstracts automatically qualify for the poster session. Should there be any questions regarding this policy, please contact mdaconference@mdausa.org.

POSTER SESSION

For those submitting an abstract only as a poster submission at the 2025 MDA Clinical & Scientific Conference, abstracts must be submitted on or before December 31, 2024.

Poster Session Options

• Options to present in person, virtually or both
• In-person posters will be viewable in the conference exhibit hall on the evenings of Sunday, March 16 through the evening of Tuesday, March 18. Dedicated poster session times will be as follows*:

Sunday, March 16, 2025

6:00 PM – 8:00 PM CT

Monday, March 17, 2025

6:00 PM – 8:00 PM CT

Tuesday, March 18, 2025

6:00 PM – 8:00 PM CT

*All times are subject to change.

Virtual Posters will be viewable on the virtual platform beginning Sunday, March 16, 2025. After the conference concludes, posters will be viewable to all attendees for a 12-month period, expiring in March 2026.

Abstract Approvals

All abstracts falling within the specified categories will be granted approval for presentation in our combined in-person and virtual poster hall, from Sunday, March 16, 2025, to Tuesday, March 18, 2025. For those intending to present their posters in person, we highly advise registering for the conference before December 31, 2024 to benefit from the early bird registration pricing.

Oral Presentation Approvals

The review process for abstracts submitted for oral presentations will start during the week of November 18, 2024. Submitters will begin receiving acceptance notifications for their abstracts for ORAL presentations from approximately December 2, 2024, to December 16, 2024. Once you receive a notification confirming the selection of your abstract for an oral presentation, we strongly advise registering for the in-person conference before the early bird registration deadline of December 31, 2024.

Abstracts selected for oral presentation submitted between November 1 and December 31, 2024 will be notified no later than January 8, 2025.

Abstract Submission Guidelines

The first author and submitter of the abstract (if applicable) will receive all correspondence from MDA regarding the abstract submission(s). Abstract titles must be no more than 150 characters including spaces. Abstract body should not exceed 300 words.

Authors may submit abstracts on the following categories in neuromuscular disease (NMD) research and care:

• Pre-Clinical Research
• Translational Research
• Clinical Trials
• Clinical Management
• Other

2025 Late-Breaking Abstract Guidelines

Late-breaking abstracts for high-profile projects will be considered for oral presentations through MDA’s late-breaking abstract portal, open from January 5, 2025 to February 5, 2025. Submissions after this deadline will not be accepted, with no exceptions.

Late-breaking abstracts must not have been presented, accepted for presentation, or published at any other scientific meeting or journal at the time of submission. Additionally, they must contain data that became available only after the December 31, 2024 abstract submission deadline. Some oral presentation slots will be reserved for high-impact late-breaking abstracts. 

2025 Abstract Print Guidelines

In-person Poster Guidelines:

• The poster size should be no larger than 36″ by 48″.
• You are responsible for printing and delivering your poster to your designated poster location.
• In-person poster presenters are also encouraged to upload their posters to the virtual platform. Final submission deadlines, PDF specifications, and the submission process will be announced shortly.

Virtual Poster Guidelines:

• The final submission can be a one-page PDF of your data.
• All submissions must include the first name, last name, and email address of the author best suited to answer questions.
• QR codes may be included as part of your poster to direct viewers to a download of your poster.
• Final submission deadlines, PDF specifications, and the submission process will be announced soon.

2025 MDA Embargo Policy

All abstracts accepted for the 2025 MDA Clinical & Scientific Conference will be available in the 2025 MDA Conference Abstract Library starting Friday, February 14, 2025*.

While authors may announce that their poster has been selected for inclusion in the conference program, data from the final poster presentation may not be shared in any form (print, broadcast, online publication, media release, or conference presentation) prior to its official presentation at the 2025 MDA Conference, which will be on Sunday, March 16, 2025, at 6:00 PM CT. Authors retain the copyright of their abstract and poster.

Encores are permitted provided that: (i) copyright requirements from the initial conference are respected and (ii) prior presentations are disclosed.

Once an abstract author confirms their role as a presenter, both the author and their organization are encouraged to promote the presentation by sharing the title, author's name, and scheduled time through various channels, tagging MDA when appropriate. After acceptance, this information will be included in the upcoming update of the interactive program on the MDA website.

All presentations at the in-person MDA Clinical & Scientific Conference will be live-streamed, recorded, and exclusively accessible on demand to registered participants for one year following the conference's conclusion.

If you have questions about the abstract submission process or poster session guidelines, please contact mdaconference@mdausa.org.

*Dates subject to change.