Welcome to the Fourth International FTD ALS Workshop

Fourth International Research Workshop on

Frontotemporal Dementia in ALS

Saturday June 18 - Thursday June 23, 2011

Updated content for the 2011 conference will be posted as it is made available.

Since the 1st International research workshop on frontotemporal dementia and ALS in 2005, significant advances have occurred in our understanding of both the clinical breadth and the biology of this entity.

As the considerable phenomenological overlap between the frontotemporal syndromes of ALS and the frontotemporal dementias (FTD) is recognized, so to is the recognition that there are distinct features of the frontotemporal syndromes of ALS that cannot be easily encapsulated in the phenomenology of the FTDs. With the advent of consensus criteria for the diagnosis of frontotemporal syndromes in ALS, a direct result of the 2nd international research workshop in 2007, the need for rapid and reliable preclinical detection and for screening exam tools has become also increasingly apparent.

Neuroimaging modalities have moved from structural to functional descriptions and in doing so, have provided a heightened awareness of the limitations to these methodologies. Our understanding of both the genetics and biochemistry have rapidly expanded, leading to an increasing chorus of investigators postulating that the two entities are but single points in a continuum of disease. Whether this is true or not remains to be seen, but as our understanding of the biology of these disorders expands, so to does our ability to address this question in an unbiased fashion.

The international research workshops on frontotemporal dementia and ALS are the only forum where both ALS and FTD investigators have the opportunity to explore these issues in a highly interactive manner. The invited speakers are leading researchers who cross multiple boundaries of expertise and disciplines. This year's workshop continues this standard, with internationally respected leaders in a broad range of relevant topics. Keep an eye on the schedule and the confirmed speakers to get an up-to-date view of the program.

The highly successful cash awards for the top three posters ($750, $500 and $250 Cdn) will again be offered to trainees (students, postdoctoral fellows, residents). New to this year will be a "rapid fire" presentation session at the beginning of the poster session, allowing each poster presenter 2 minutes at the podium with the opportunity to peak the interest of the attendees. Abstracts can again be submitted on line.

The highly successful Stratford evening will again be offered. After maintaining a stable cost for the first two years, we have had to increase the cost to $225/person – still a great deal for full transportation, an exceptional dinner hosted once again by the nationally recognized chefs of the Church Restaurant, and an evening at the Stratford Theatre. The play will be "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum", a Steven Sondheim musical directed by Des McAnuff, one of North America's most celebrated directors. We would suggest signing up early as this evening is always over-subscribed and the tickets limited in number (100)!

We encourage you to attend this 4th international research workshop on frontotemporal dementia in ALS. But note, as expressed by the attendees of the previous conferences, we will keep the numbers of attendees limited. So register early!