Don't miss the triennial congress of EFIC taking place in Istanbul 13-16 September 2006. For further details visit the congress website at: www.kenes.com/efic. Meeting has full CME accreditation (18 points).

• Abstract submission is now open online at www.kenes.com/efic . Deadline for abstract submission is May 15, 2006 .

• Each full registration will receive a free three year subscription to EFIC´s official journal “the European Journal of Pain”. For further information for full registration and this offer, consult the preliminary announcement of the congress.

The Congress has a “Financial Aid” form available for applicants from low resource and currency restricted countries. The Financial Application details can be found at: http://www.kenes.com/efic/fin_deadline.asp

For further details on the congress and Istanbul , visit the appropriate page on this site or the above website reference.

Welcome Message from the President of EFIC Welcome Message from the Chairman of the Scientific Programme Committee Main Topics Premliminary Scientific Programme Outline About Istanbul

Thursday, September 14, 2006 Friday, September 15, 2006 Saturday, September 16, 2006 09:00-10:30 Plenary Sessions p1 Training the body and the brain: Current concepts in rehabilitation.  G. Lorimer Moseley , UK The science of fear: mechanisms and management of catastrophising Michael J.L. Sullivan , Canada Special needs for pain management in the elderly Robert Helme , Australia p2 Painful peripheral neuropathies Steve Scherer , USA   Anti- TNFa therapies for pain: the science and clinical results Rob J. Moots , UK           Painful neuropathy following cancer chemotherapy Gary Bennett , Canada p3 Imaging pain Irene Tracey , UK Gene expression microarrays in the discovery of pain mechanisms Michael Costigan , USA Morphine analgesia without constipation: peripheralized opiate receptor antagonists Eric Carter , USA 11:00-12:30 Topical Seminars (Parallel Sessions) TS1 Free communications 1 Free communications 2 Free communications 3 TS2 Central hypersensitivity in chronic musculo­skeletal & visceral pain Lars Arendt-Nielsen , Denmark     Tony Dickenson , UK Maria Adele Giamberardi , Italy Visceral pain – basic and clinical aspects Maria Adele Giamberardino , Italy   Ursula Wesselman , USA Karen Berkley , USA Pediatric pain: effects now and later in life Dick Tibboel , The Netherlands Karel Allegaert , Belgium Christiane Hermann , Germany TS3 Pathophysiology and therapy of orofacial pain.  Joanna Zakrzewska , UK Yair Sharav , Israel Turo Nurmikko , UK Small fiber neuropathies – what makes them painful? Ellen Jorum , Norway Torhild Warncke , Norway Claudia Sommer , Germany Kristin Ørstavik , Norway Epidemiology of chronic pain and its impact on health care systems Rolf-Detlef Treede , Germany Reinhard Thoma , Germany Franco Mongini , Italy Thomas R. Toelle , Germany TS4 Spinal injections for pain control:  what is the evidence?     Serdar Erdine , Turkey Samuel Hassenbusch , USA Ben Crul , The Netherlands Gul Talu , Turkey Migraine genes and mechanisms: three painful questions Michel Ferrari , The Netherlands Rami Burstein , USA Peter Goadsby , UK Non-neural cells, receptor sensiti­zation and central sensitization Allan Basbaum , USA Steve McMahon , UK Christoph Stein , Germany Maria Fitzgerald , UK TS5 Role of cerebral cortex in pain perception Marc Sindou , France Patrick Mertens , France Roland Peyron , France   Anti-inflammatory cytokines (IL-10, thalidomide?) for pain therapy? Linda Watkins , USA    Don Manning , USA Kirk Johnson , USA AMPA- & NMDA-type glutamate receptors and their protein-protein interactions in pain processing Susan Fleetwood-Walker , UK Rohini Kuner , Germany Volker Neugebauer , USA TS6 Cox-2-inhibitors: New insights, new options? Kay Brune , Germany         Hanns Ulrich Zeilhofer , Switzerland Karsten Schroer , Germany Measuring the placebo effect, drugs that enhance it, and lessons for clinical trial methodology Fabrizio Benedetti , Italy Predrag Petrovic , Sweden Lene Vase , Denmark Nurse prescribing and the role of nurses in pain management  Kate Seers , UK Trudy Towell , UK Tone Rustøen , Norway TS7 Programming specificity: the potential of siRNAs, gene therapy, and antibodies as pain relief strategies of the future. Martin Koltzenburg , UK TBA TBA Does physiotherapy have efficacy for low back pain?  The evidence Maureen Simmonds , Canada Jennifer Klaber Moffet , UK Harriet Wittink , The Netherlands Cues for pain and distress from others Geert Crombez , Belgium    Liesbet Goubert , Belgium Jeff Mogil , Canada Gwenola Herbette , Belgium 14:30-16:00 Topical Seminars (Parallel Sessions) TS8 Clinical case discussion:  Chronic pain – does neuropathic pain differ from inflammatory pain and does it matter ? Nadine Attal , France Thomas Toelle , Germany Clinical case discussion:Should patients under chronic opioid and/or anticonvulsant therapy drive their car? Klaus Lehmann , Germany Rainer Sabatowski , Germany Clinical case discussion: Opioids for patients with non-cancer pain. Henry McQuay , UK Ben Crul , The Netherlands TS9 Nerve inflammation as a factor in neuropathic and cancer related pain Eli Eliav , Israel Gary Bennett , Canada Claudia Sommer , Germany Foraminal (pulsed) radiofrequency technique: does it relieve pain, and how?   Jan Van Zundert , Belgium Bert Joosten , The Netherlands Alex Cahana , Switzerland Practical considerations in interventional pain management at the end of life. Stein Kaasa , Norway Harald Breivik , Norway Luchas Radbruch , Germany TS10 Cannabinoids in pain medicine – facts and fiction Hans Kress , Austria Victoria Chapman , UK Birgit Kraft , Austria Flemming W. Bach , Denmark Quantitative sensory testing (QST) in pain medicine: What is its value in clinical practice? Oliver WilderSmith , The Netherlands David Yarnitzky , Israel Roman Rolke , Germany Mechanisms and assessment of musculoskeletal pain Anthony Jones , UK Bruce Kidd , UK Peter Croft , UK TS11 Diet and other environmental influences on pain Yoram Shir , Canada William Rea , USA Mark Ware , Canada Cold receptors, cold transduction and cold pain Felix Viana , Spain Bernd Nilius , Belgium Ralf Baron , Germany Carlos Belmonte , Spain Does chronic pain cause neuro­degeneration ? Vania Apkarian , USA TBA TBA TS12 Wiring and re-wiring of the dorsal horn Juergen Sandkuhler , Austria    Deolinda Lima , Portugal Tony Dickenson , UK Genetic analysis of neuropathic pain mechanisms Ariel Darvasi , Israel Peter Reeh , Germany Marshall Devor , Israel Mathias Gebauer , Germany Neuropathic pain in patients and animal models: are we looking at the same thing? Ralf Baron , Germany ( Gary Bennett , Canada ) Susan Fleetwood-Walker , UK Per Hansson , Sweden TS13 Pain: philosophy and ethical dilemmas Alex Cahana , Switzerland Finn Nortvedt , Norway Sadek Beloucif , France Children and adolescents with chronic pain Chris Eccleston , UK Geert Crombez , Belgium Christiane Hermann , Germany Genetic polymorphisms associated with pain sensitivity Andreas Zimmer , Germany Zeev Seltzer , Canada John Wood , UK TS14 Pain measurement and control in the cognitively impaired and non-communicative Ruth Defrin , Israel Anne Hunt , UK Ken Craig , Canada How to change public p erception of pain? David Niv , Israel Michael Zenz , Germany Athena Vadalouca , Greece ( Giustino Varrassi , Italy ) 17:30-18:15 Special Lectures (Plenary Session) p4 Mechanisms of osteoarthritic and skeletal pain Patrick Mantyh , USA Neurobiology of addiction Howard Fields , USA Sex hormones, pregnancy, gender and pain Roger Fillingim , USA     Abstract Submission Form Free Presentations www.kenes.com/efic/call.asp Invited Lectures www.kenes.com/efic/call_inv.asp   For more information please contact: European Federation of IASP Chapters (EFIC) Ms. Sarah Wheeler Executive Officer E-mail: efic@internet.gr or Secretariat and Congress Organisers EFIC 2006 Congress Secretariat Kenes International 17 Rue du Cendrier, PO Box 1726 CH-1211, Geneva 1, Switzerland Tel: +41 22 908 0488 Fax: +41 22 732 2850 E-mail: efic@kenes.com