Abstract Guidelines and Submission

Studies with data analyzed after the General Abstract submission deadline are eligible for Late-Breaking Abstract submission if they meet a high threshold of scientific merit. These abstracts must be submitted through the CROI 2026 Dashboard by 2:10 PM Pacific Time on Monday, January 5, 2026 (abstracts must be submitted by that time to be considered for presentation – no extensions).

The person submitting the abstract must be listed as either the Presenting Author or a Coauthor. A CROI Conference Account is required to submit an abstract. To login to your account or to create an account, click here.

For all submission deadlines and key dates, please refer to the Dates and Deadlines page.

Technical Issues: If you encounter technical issues that prevent you from submitting your abstract, you must email CROIabstracts@iasusa.org before the submission deadline. Issues reported after the deadline typically cannot be address, as abstracts immediately proceed to review.

General Abstracts must be submitted through the CROI 2026 Dashboard by Wednesday, October 1, 2025. The person submitting the abstract must be listed as either the Presenting Author or a Coauthor. A CROI Conference Account is required to submit an abstract. To login to your account or to create an account, click here.

For all submission deadlines and key dates, please refer to the Dates and Deadlines page.

Technical Issues: If you encounter technical issues that prevent you from submitting your abstract, you must email CROIabstracts@iasusa.org before the submission deadline. Issues reported after the deadline typically cannot be address, as abstracts immediately proceed to review.

Based on the submitter’s selection from a list of CROI Abstract Categories, each abstract is assigned to the review team whose expertise matches that of the abstract’s subject matter. Although the Scientific Program Committee and external reviewers may reassign an abstract to a more appropriate category, the abstract is most likely to receive an equitable review if the submitter carefully selects the correct category during submission.

See: Categories and Definitions

The title should be concise, clearly reflect the abstract’s subject, and not exceed 100 characters, including spaces.

Titles must be written in Title Case, following American Medical Association (AMA) style. Key rules include:

• Capitalize all nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, and prepositions/conjunctions longer than 4 letters
• Keep prepositions and coordinating conjunctions with 4 or fewer letters in lowercase
• Capitalize both parts of a hyphenated compound
• When using scientific names, capitalize only the first word, eg Dracaena trifasciata

Ensure your title accurately reflects the content while adhering to these formatting rules.

Selecting up to 5 search terms from the standard list ensures that the presentation will be connected to other presentations with a related subject matter. If a desired search term is not found in the CROI search term database, it may be added by the submitter. When adding a term not on the current list, consider that a search term should often be a single word or idea. Complex terms should be simplified and entered as separate search terms (eg, “breast milk transmission” should be entered as different search terms: “breast milk” and “transmission”). Selecting a term from the existing list is the best method to ensure that an abstract will match those of a similar topic during searches by attendees.

Special Areas of Focus

Please be sure to note any special area of focus for your abstract such as SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19), MPXV (Mpox), or Behavioral or Social Sciences.

Describing New Compounds

Please be sure to include sufficient information to allow for a meaningful review of compound data, including isolation, activity, chemical structure, mechanism of action, toxic effects, and pharmacologic data. The chemical or molecular structure must be shown in the presentation (but it need not be part of the abstract or published in the Abstract eBook).

Case Reports and Meta-Analyses

CROI generally does not accept abstracts for case reports, meta-analyses, or systematic reviews unless they are of major public health significance.

Trade Names

Trade names for drugs should not be used in abstracts. Refer to drugs and products by their nonproprietary names.

Sex Stratification and Other Demographic Variables

Abstracts from randomized trials and cohorts should follow the ICMJE guidelines, including reporting of study designs (eg, prospective, observational, randomized, double-blind, STROBE, CONSORT, or others), statistical methods, and outcomes by demographic variables. The presentation should provide sex-stratified results for human clinical or epidemiological studies or identify who was included if it includes only a single population. Abstracts of preclinical data including the use of cell lines and animal studies should include the sex of the animals or the sex of the source of the cell lines. If data are not available on sex (as assigned at birth) or gender (where gender is relevant to the study results), this should be identified as a limitation in the study.

See: ICMJE Preparing for Submission

People-First Language and the Use of Appropriate Terminology

See: Appropriate Terminology

Statements to Support

Statements of grant support or funding statements may not be included in the abstract text (eg, Study was funded by NIH). Statements of support may be included in the presentation of the abstract at CROI, if accepted.

Prior Publication and Presentation Policy

In general, CROI does not accept data that describe work that has been previously published or publicly presented, or that are scheduled for publication or presentation before CROI.

Exceptions may be made if:

• The abstract includes substantial new data or different analyses, OR
• The prior presentation was at a small conference (fewer than 400 attendees) or a conference that is not focused on HIV, viral hepatitis, or SARS-CoV-2

If study data have been published, submitted for publication, or previously presented at another major HIV- or SARS-CoV-2-related national or international scientific or medical conference (ie, generally more than 400 attendees), the abstract submitter will be asked to provide the following details during submission:

• The name and date (or anticipated date) of the publication or conference presentation
• Whether any copyright restrictions apply to the data

Manuscripts placed on preprint servers ahead of peer review are not considered published. Abstract text under copyright by a publication or another conference should not be submitted to CROI.

After Acceptance

If an abstract accepted for CROI is subsequently accepted for publication or presentation elsewhere prior to CROI, the Presenting Author must notify the Conference Manager at CROIabstracts@iasusa.org as soon as possible, ideally when the work is first accepted for review, presentation, or publication.

Although prior publication or presentation does not automatically disqualify the abstract from being presented at CROI, the strong preference is that any other dissemination occurs simultaneously with or after the CROI presentation.

Requests for early publication or presentation will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis.

Important: Failure to promptly inform the conference about plans to publish or present the abstract before CROI may result in the abstract being removed from the CROI program.

Abstract Structure and Guidelines

CROI abstracts are structured into 4 sections: Background, Methods, Results, and Conclusions. Text submitted should be written as a single paragraph per section. Do not include section headings in the text as they will automatically be added by the submission system.

• The total character limit for the abstract body is 2,500 characters, including spaces
• Tables and figures also do not count toward the character limit

Section Descriptions

• Background
  • Why was the study conducted? Briefly describe the rationale of the study, which can include the hypothesis.
• Methods
  • What was done and how was it done? Detail the experimental methods, statistics, and processes employed in the study.
• Results
  • What were the findings? Describe the findings of the study, including data. Promises of results “to be determined” are not acceptable. Abstracts without data may be rejected. The results section should include sex stratification and other demographic variables and use appropriate terminology.
• Conclusions
  • What does the study suggest or imply? Logically describe sound conclusions and reliable inferences drawn from the study results.

One graphic (eg table, figure, or other image) is permitted in an abstract submission if it provides essential detail about the work that the abstract text cannot adequately describe. Graphics that exceed the guidelines below will be removed from the submitted abstract, will not be displayed for reviewers (the abstract will be reviewed without the graphic), and will not be included in the Abstract eBook (if accepted). Because abstracts go directly into review after the deadline, graphics that do not meet CROI guidelines cannot be replaced. Therefore, the abstract text must include all key details needed to clearly communicate the science to reviewers and, if accepted, to the CROI audience. Graphics should support and enhance the scientific message, not serve as the primary means of communication. To upload a graphic, the file type must be an image file.

Graphics do not count toward the 2500-character limit for abstract text.

1. Content: The graphic should convey essential information about the work that the text of the abstract could not adequately describe
2. Viewability: The graphic should be easily viewable (including headers, figure legends, and data points) if printed in the 4-inch by 4-inch space (10.15 cm x 10.15 cm).
3. Graphs and Figures: Presenters may submit 1 graph or figure. In some instances, a figure or graph with 2 panels may be acceptable, as long as the panels represent the same figure (ie same x-axis and y-axis, same type of graph, same analysis, and represent, for example, different populations, different cells lines, or other comparisons within a similar analysis). A graphic that has 2 or more panels [eg, labeled A and B, etc] that is actually 2 or more separate figures (ie, different analysis, different graphic representations of the data, [eg, a Kaplan-Meier curve and a scatter plot, a bar graph and a line graph, or a heat map and a box plot], or a figure with a graph and a separate image) will count as 2 or more separate figures and will be removed. Additional information in the title, legend description, labels, (excluding x-axis and y-axis labels), and footnoted should not exceed 100 words. The plot area displaying the data and the x-axis and y-axis labels are not counted in the 100-word limit.
4. Tables: A Table may have a maximum of 64 cells of data. Additional information, including title, legend, description, additional labels, and footnotes, may not exceed 100 words. The table row and column headers do not count as part of the 64 cells of data or the 100-word limit.
5. Graphics that present some data in a tabular format (ie, including columns and rows) should follow the guidelines for tables (eg, a maximum of 64 cells). For example, tables that include a graphical representation of confidence intervals, risk ratios, etc. Each of these data count as 1 cell.
6. Images: Images that are not legible in  a 4-inch by 4-inch format are not acceptable will be removed.
7. Flowcharts are acceptable as long they are legible in a 4-inch by 4-inch format. Flowcharts that are illegible will be removed.
8. Inclusion of a graphic must conform to the guidelines around length, size, complexity, and legibility. Elements that do not meet these guidelines are removed from consideration in the review process and, if the abstract is accepted, from inclusion in the Abstract eBook. For more information, see Common Reasons for Removal of Tables, Figures, and Other Graphics.

The person who submits an abstract must affirm the following on behalf of the presenting author and coauthors.

• ALL coauthors have reviewed and approved the abstract’s content
• If accepted, the presenting author will present the abstract in the format designated by the CROI Program Committee (eg, Oral Abstract, Themed Discussion, or Poster) and will be present for the session(s) in which they are assigned to present
• Financial relationships have been disclosed for the presenting author and their institution (to themselves or their institution on their behalf). If the new presenter is designated after disposition, financial disclosures of the new presenting author must be provided
• If the designated presenting author cannot present the abstract at CROI, a new presenter from among the coauthors listed on the abstract will be selected. The new presenter must provide a disclosure of financial relationships
• Complete and accurate contact (email) and affiliation information for all coauthors have been provided
• Permission is given for the presentation to be videotaped and recorded and the abstract to be published in the Abstract eBook, CROI website, Topics in Antiviral Medicine (for eventual listing in the National Library of Medicine), and other related conference materials

Failure to comply with these policies may result in withdrawing the presentation from CROI: The authors must commit to these responsibilities. At the discretion of the Program Committee Chairs, authors may be penalized, including a ban on attendance at future CROI.

Requirements for Authorship

Authors listed in the abstract should conform to the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) recommendations for authorship:

1. Substantial contributions to the conception or design of the work; or the acquisition, analysis, or interpretation of data for the work; AND
2. Drafting the work or revising it critically for important intellectual content; AND
3. Final approval of the version submitted; AND
4. Agreement to be accountable for all aspects of the work in ensuring that questions related to the accuracy or integrity of any part of the work are appropriately investigated and resolved

See: ICMJE Defining the Role of Authors and Contributors

Author Listing

Each abstract may include up to 15 authors. If more than 15 are listed, the last authors will be automatically removed. Submitters may also include 1 Research Group, which will be listed in the author block.

By submitting an abstract, the submitter confirms that all listed authors have reviewed and approved the abstract’s content. This confirmation ensures the accuracy of the data, the scientific validity of the results and conclusions, and that all authors accept responsibility for the integrity of the work. This affirmation aligns with the ICMJE authorship requirements and is essential for the abstract reviewers during the evaluation process.

Presenting Author

The Presenting Author listed on the abstract is responsible for delivering the presentation if the abstract is accepted. In an emergency, a coauthor may serve as a replacement presenter. The authors must disclose this information to CROIabstracts@iasusa.org, and the new presenting author must update the abstract submission to disclose financial relationships with ineligible companies.

Presenting Author Financial Disclosures

The abstract submitter must complete the Financial Disclosure Form on the IAS–USA website, disclosing any financial relationships with ineligible companies (formerly “commercial interests”) from the past 24 months. Any real or perceived conflicts of interest must be addressed and mitigated before the CME (Continuing Medical Education) activity is delivered.

The ACCME defines an ineligible company as “those whose primary business is producing, marketing, selling, re-selling, or distributing health care products used by or on patients.”

Posthumous Inclusion of a Coauthor

Presenters may recognize the contributions of a deceased colleague during the presentation at CROI. However, the posthumous recognition of a coauthor is not permitted within the listing of authors in the abstract as the deceased author cannot meet the ICJME criteria 3.

By submitting an abstract, you are assigning copyright of these materials, but not the data, to CROI. See CROI Conference Materials Copyright Statement.

Abstract Review and Disposition Notices

Each abstract is reviewed and scored independently by 5 to 10 experts in the particular field. The review of abstracts begins immediately after the submission deadline. Therefore, changes to abstracts are not possible after the submission deadline.

The disposition of each abstract will be sent via email to the abstract submitter and all authors listed on the abstract submission. Accurate professional email addresses for the presenting author and all coauthors are required for this purpose.

Common Reasons Abstracts are Not Accepted for Presentation

Because of the number of abstract submissions, the CROI Program Committee is unable to provide feedback on individual submissions. Below are common reasons why abstracts are not accepted for presentation.

• Data, including statistical analyses, are not included or offer inadequate/insufficient support for conclusions
• The subject matter is not appropriate for CROI
• All coauthors have not approved the abstract prior to submission
• Information is not novel (new enough)
• Failure to disclose prior publication or presentation

• The abstract is duplicative of other submissions
• The format does not follow guidelines (eg, data missing, more than 1 table or figure submitted)
• The submission is poorly written and difficult to understand
• The background does not summarize the hypothesis
• The methodology is inadequate or insufficient to support conclusions
• Controls are absent or inadequate
• Statistical evaluation is inadequate or absent
• The summary of essential results is inadequate or absent
• Data are not included or offer inadequate/insufficient support for conclusions
• Submission reports clinical trial data from unplanned analysis or incomplete or ongoing studies
• Abstract included a graphic (figure, table, or other image) that was removed prior to review and the text of the abstract did not include sufficient data for the reviewers to score adequately

Trade names for drugs or products must not be used in presentations. Investigators should refer to drugs, biologics, devices, and other products only by their nonproprietary (generic) names.

Presentations must not include promotional or marketing content. This includes non–science-based promotional language intended to promote or “sell” a product, company, or brand. In addition, presenters may not include QR codes, URLs, or other links that direct attendees to promotional, marketing, or commercial materials.

All content in oral abstract, themed discussion, and poster presentations must remain scientific, objective, and data-focused.