The 24th edition of the annual World Congress on Osteoporosis, Osteoarthritis and Musculoskeletal Diseases (WCO-IOF-ESCEO) took place this year in London, UK, from the 11th–14th of April. As always, it was an exciting opportunity for leading researchers to gather and discuss the latest innovations in rheumatology.
Renowned experts, and chairpersons of the congress, John A. Kanis, Director of the Centre for Metabolic Bone Diseases, University of Sheffield, UK; and Jean-Yves Reginster, Professor of Epidemiology, Public Health and Health Economics as well as Professor of Bioethics and Societal Medicine at the University of Liège, Belgium, opened the ceremony. After sharing their excitement on the record number in attendance, they warmly welcomed René Rizzoli, University of Geneva, Switzerland, to the stage, who subjectively shared the best clinical papers in the topics of sarcopenia, osteoporosis treatment, vitamin D, and osteoarthritis, among others.
An impressive number of 1,507 abstracts were submitted this year; a record-breaking figure for the congress. The honorary president of the International Osteoporosis Foundation (IOF), and vice president of ESCEO, Cyrus Cooper, acknowledged this in his opening talk, as well as the variety of sessions ranging from poster viewing sessions, to ‘meet the expert’ sessions, joint symposiums, and satellite symposia, amongst others. Additionally, several awards were presented at the congress, such as the IOF President’s Award, the 2024 ESCEO Medal of Excellence, and the 2024 IOF Committee of Scientific Advisors (CSA) Medal of Achievement, all acknowledging the pioneering research efforts from the past year.
Anshu Banerjee, Director of Maternal, Newborn, Child, Adolescent Health and Ageing, World Health Organization (WHO), Geneva, Switzerland, subsequently spoke on bone health in an ageing population. From 2000–2019, the years lived in disability, attributable to low bone density and fractures, in older persons aged 60 and over, has risen dramatically by over 80%. Elaborating on this statistic, Banerjee explained that falls remain a significant concern for the ageing population, and a common contributor to the growing prevalence of low bone density and fractures. Looking to the future, he spoke of the WHO’s New Global Health Agenda, put into effect from 2025–2028, which aims “to promote, provide, and protect health and wellbeing for all people, everywhere.” This will be achieved by responding to climate change, addressing the root causes of ill health, improving equity in service coverage, and helping mitigate emergency risks, amongst other initiatives. In 2020, WHO provided clinical guidelines targeted at improving bone health in ageing patients, as well as the ‘WHO Step Safe’ strategies for preventing and managing falls.
The remainder of the opening ceremony featured the IOF and ESCEO highlights, and informative lectures from Nicholas R. Fuggle, University of Southampton, UK, titled, ‘Artificial intelligence, a tribute to Alan Turing’; and Rizzoli, entitled, ‘Diseases represented in paintings of the Renaissance and Baroque Period’.
The opening ceremony ended with a particularly entertaining performance about the importance of bone health. It was a truly delightful opening ceremony, setting up for another successful congress. Read on for more key insights into the WCO-IOF-ESCEO 2024!
