Networking is the number one reason attendees register to attend the World Congress on Pain. World Congress is designed to provide attendees with networking opportunities over the five days, including poster sessions, coffee breaks, receptions, early-career attendee activities, and an interactive Exhibit Hall featuring an Innovation Stage, the Technology & Innovation Pavilion: VR Immersion Hub, and the Thai Traditional Medicine Pavilion.
Welcome Reception
Kick off the World Congress at the Welcome Reception on Monday, 26 October, from 17:00–19:00 in the Exhibition/Poster Hall.
This gathering is an opportunity to reconnect with colleagues, meet new connections, explore the exhibit hall, visit the IASP Marketplace, and celebrate the start of the World Congress. Whether you are a returning attendee or this is your first World Congress, the Welcome Reception is the largest networking event.
First-Time Attendee Meet-and-Greet
Attending your first World Congress on Pain can feel overwhelming, but you do not have to navigate it alone. First-time attendees are invited to join World Congress alumni, speakers, and IASP leadership before the Welcome Reception in the Exhibition/Poster Hall for structured networking, practical guidance, and tips for making the most of the Congress experience..
Early Career Reception
The Early Career Reception will take place at BEAT Active, an indoor sports and entertainment venue with an activity-focused atmosphere.
Designed for early-career attendees, this networking event offers an opportunity to meet peers, make new connections, and build community during the World Congress. The Early Career Reception provides a relaxed, energizing environment to connect.
Early Career Center
The Early Career Center is a dedicated space for trainees, early-career researchers, clinicians, and professionals to network, learn, and build practical skills throughout the World Congress.
Designed to support the next generation of pain professionals, the Center will offer networking, mentoring opportunities, career-development sessions, writing guidance, wellness activities, and peer-to-peer exchange. The Early Career Center is designed to be a central meeting place for early-career attendees to connect, ask questions, and participate in programming tailored to them.
Planned activities include:
First-Time-Attendee Meet and Greet
Attending your first World Congress can feel overwhelming, you don’t have to navigate it alone. Join early career and first-time attendees for a relaxed networking session designed for first-time attendees to connect with peers, share experiences, and build confidence at the kick-off of the first day of World Congress.
Early Career Networking
Start the day by meeting fellow early-career researchers and professionals in an informal setting. These morning networking opportunities are designed to help attendees exchange ideas, expand their professional community, and begin the day with new connections.
Meet the Editors of PAIN and PAIN Reports
Clear, engaging writing can make research more impactful. Join the editors of PAIN and PAIN Reports for an interactive session on active voice in academic manuscripts, with practical guidance to strengthen your writing and communicate your science more effectively.
Datablitz
Outstanding poster presenters will be invited to present brief, focused summaries of their work to a live audience of pain professionals. These dynamic sessions will highlight emerging pain science and offer presenters a valuable opportunity to increase the visibility of their research.
Charting Career Conundrums
Every career includes unexpected challenges and difficult decisions. Through group discussion and roundtable exchange, participants will reflect on their own career paths and gain practical insights from diverse perspectives.
Mindfulness Sessions
Guided mindfulness sessions will offer a calm space to decompress, recharge, and prepare for another stimulating day of world-leading pain research.
Poster Sessions and the Exhibit Hall
The Exhibition/Poster Hall will serve as one of the central gathering spaces of the World Congress on Pain. Throughout the week, attendees can visit poster presentations, meet exhibitors, shop the IASP Marketplace, explore interactive displays, and continue conversations sparked during scientific sessions.
Poster discussions offer an especially valuable opportunity to engage directly with researchers, ask questions, and discover new work from across the global pain field.
Innovation Labs
The Innovation Labs will highlight emerging approaches, technologies, and tools shaping the future of pain research and care.
These sessions will give attendees the opportunity to hear from innovators, ask questions, and explore new ideas in a more focused and interactive setting.
Technology & Innovation Pavilion: VR Immersion Hub
The Technology & Innovation Pavilion: VR Immersion Hub will offer attendees an immersive, hands-on opportunity to explore how virtual reality is being applied across pain research, clinical care, rehabilitation, pediatrics, behavioral intervention, and patient self-management.
Through expert-led demonstrations, live casting, guided experiences, and industry activations, attendees will engage with emerging VR tools beyond traditional lecture formats.
The pavilion is designed to translate scientific evidence into practical understanding, showcase possible future care pathways, and foster dialogue among clinicians, researchers, innovators, and industry partners. The VR Immersion Hub will include scheduled expert demonstrations, open demonstration periods with industry partners, live experiences, video displays, guided demonstrations, and facilitated discussions throughout the day.
Thai Traditional Medicine Pavilion
The Thai Traditional Medicine Pavilion, developed in collaboration with IASP, the Thai Association for the Study of Pain, and Thailand’s Ministry of Public Health, will introduce attendees to Thailand’s traditional healthcare practices within a modern pain management context.
The pavilion will feature trained therapists who will offer Thai massage demonstrations and supervised experiential sessions. Attendees will be able to observe and experience selected techniques while learning about the principles, cultural foundations, and potential benefits of traditional Thai practice.
Faculty from Thailand will also discuss the role of traditional medicinal oils used in massage, including their cultural relevance and practical application.
By combining expert-led education, hands-on learning, and cultural exchange, the pavilion will highlight how Thai massage may support relaxation, musculoskeletal comfort, flexibility, circulation, and physical function. It will also showcase Thailand’s leadership in traditional medicine and create a distinctive opportunity for international attendees to explore integrative approaches to pain care in a respectful, evidence-informed, and culturally grounded setting.
Company-Sponsored Lunch Symposia
Expand your knowledge of the latest advances in pain research, treatment, and patient care by attending a Company-Sponsored Lunch Symposium during the World Congress on Pain.
Hosted by leading organizations, including Haleon, Viatris, Eli Lilly, Daiichi Sankyo, Grünenthal, and Merz Therapeutics, these sessions will provide scientific and clinical insights and offer attendees the opportunity to engage with experts in the field.
Lunch will be available on a first-come, first-served basis in limited quantities, so attendees are encouraged to arrive early.
Time: 12:45–13:45
- Tuesday, 27 October: Haleon and Viatris
- Wednesday, 28 October: Eli Lilly, Daiichi Sankyo, and Grünenthal
- Thursday, 29 October: Merz Therapeutics
