IPMI is one of the longest running conferences in medical imaging. It was started in 1969 by a group of young scientists working in nuclear medicine. With a few iterations the conference expanded into other areas and became established as a meeting for in-depth discussion of new methodological developments in medical imaging. Papers are presented in single-track sessions, in which sufficient time is allocated to papers to permit speakers to give a detailed presentation of their work. The discussions that follow form a hallmark of IPMI. It is tradition that these should have no time-limit, yielding stimulating and lively interactions, and sometimes fierce debates about new developments; this also presents some interesting challenges for the organizers, because the program is made adaptive to longer-than-scheduled discussions, but this makes for a truly stimulating and rewarding meeting. For that reason, IPMI is often viewed as a true workshop in contrast to the constrained schedules of most conferences. To preserve its character, attendance to the conference is limited to a maximum of 130 participants.

One of the key goals of IPMI is to encourage participation of the most promising and talented young researchers in the field, allowing them to explore new ideas with some of the leading researchers in this area. Active involvement is stimulated by preparation before the sessions in small study groups, in which everyone participates. After reading the papers of their session, the study group members meet to discuss the papers before they are presented, and to formulate questions and comments to kick off the discussions. The prestigious Erbsmann award for first time IPMI presenters adds an extra stimulus for young researchers for active involvement in the meeting.

IPMI is typically situated in a relatively small (and sometimes remote) location; together with the collective housing in campus or university dorms, and the requirement of a bar with late opening hours closeby, this has proven to be a recipe for continued scientific and non-scientific discussions in the evenings. The traditional soccer match pitting the U.S. vs "the rest of the world", refereed by the ever impartial IPMI nestor Andrew Todd Pokropek, adds to the rich tradition of IPMI. All these factors make IPMI a unique meeting for which most participants hold a true affection. Many already block out the next IPMI in their agendas two years ahead of time. We are looking forward to your participation at IPMI 2009 on the campus of the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia, U.S.A.

Committees Chairs

Jerry L. Prince
Johns Hopkins University, USA

Dzung L. Pham
Johns Hopkins University, USA

Kyle J. Myers
Center for Devices and Radiological Health, FDA, USA

Paper Selection Committee

Guido Gerig
University of Utah, USA

Richard M. Leahy
University of Southern California, USA

Nico Karssemeijer
Radboud University Nijmegen Medical Centre, The Netherlands



Key Dates

January 12
Deadline for submission of full length papers

March 11
Notification of acceptance/rejection

April 3
Deadline for camera ready copy and first author registration

May 1
Deadline for reduced rate registration

July 5
Arrival and reception

July 6
Conference begins

July 10
Conference ends