In 2026, the International Society for Computer-Assisted Orthopaedic Surgery (CAOS) will hold its 26^th Annual Meeting in Matsuyama, Japan.

CAOS is an academic field focused on developing and applying computer technology to enhance the safety and reliability of the diagnosis and treatment of musculoskeletal diseases. This conference seeks to unite medical, engineering, and industrial experts to share information and engage in academic discussions aimed at advancing and promoting CAOS technology. Research and development of innovative technologies are underway, including surgical education enhanced by augmented reality, sports instruction using markerless real-time motion analysis, and remote treatment enabled by 5G/6G communication technology. In particular, the advancements in artificial intelligence have been remarkable, with applications spanning automatic diagnosis, image analysis, and treatment prognosis prediction. These developments are significantly transforming the field of orthopaedics. To avoid human error, improve diagnostic and treatment accuracy, and reduce complications, it is essential to fully utilize these CAOS technologies.

On the other hand, the clinical application of CAOS technology is limited to specific fields and facilities due to its high cost and the need for specialized expertise. To make this technology more widely accessible, further technological advancements are necessary. As CAOS technology is a tool utilized by medical professionals, it is crucial to establish educational programs that ensure its proper use. One of the key missions of our Society is to facilitate discussions among experts in medicine, engineering, and industry to address various challenges in the CAOS field and to identify new needs and opportunities for development.

In addition to the Society's traditional strengths in the development and discussion of navigation and robotics technologies, this year's meeting will continue to strengthen our burgeoning expertise in emerging, broad CAOS domains including novel sensors, machine learning, artificial intelligence, advanced planning, and clinical workflows, to name a few. In addition to recognized areas of CAOS, we welcome papers that are opening new doors and new ways of thinking. To see if your work fits with this conference, review the List of Topics below, our past Open Access Proceedings, or contact the Programme Chair (details below).

Submission Guidelines

Papers are expected to demonstrate novelty by arguing that there is a gap in the existing literature that the presented work addresses and to present data to support any conclusions drawn. 

You will be asked to submit two files, for which templates are available: 

• Main paper (500-1000 words), in PDF or Latex format, see details below and link to templates below.
• Short abstract (250 words), in PDF format, summarizing your contribution.

Please use the Word or Latex template, found here, to ensure your submision adheres to formatting requirements as improperly formatted submissions will require revision. All papers will be required to include at least three references in the Introduction to establish the need for and novelty of the work, and at least two references in the discussion section to establish the significance of the findings compared with the existing literature. Papers should be 500-1000 words in length (excluding references and title block). Only two graphics are allowed, each of which can be a picture, a diagram or a table. The use of collages (multi-part figures) is permitted, as long as the text is legible and the graphics are clear. Please try to limit formatting complexity and make sure to embed text labels within diagrams and pictures. These images will be used without change in the final digital proceedings.

We especially encourage young researchers to take part in the conference. Accordingly, some preference will be given to presenting authors who do not yet hold (or have only very recently taken up) faculty appointments or post-graduation industry. Furthermore, in the case of contributions with a first author who also presents the work at the conference, the Society will again be offering the ISTELAR Emerging Researchers Awards.  

List of Topics

Clinical Application Focus

• Ankle
• Knee 
• Hip
• Spine 
• Shoulder 
• Elbow 
• Wrist 
• Deformity Correction 
• Joint Replacement 
• Revision Surgery 
• Trauma Surgery 
• Oncology 
• Rehabilitation 
• Orthopaedics in general

Technological Focus 

• Medical Imaging (morphological or functional, CT, MRT, US, Elastography, PET…) 
• Artificial Intelligence, Machine/Deep Learning, Generative AI
• Image and Signal Processing 
• Registration and Data Fusion
• Augmented, mixed, & virtual reality 
• Mathematical, Statistical, & Computational Modelling (Statistical Models, Biomechanical Models…) 
• Simulators and Planning Software 
• Robotics: Soft & Hard 
• Navigation 
• Patient-specific instruments and implants
• Smart/Connected instruments and implants 
• New Sensors and Actuators
• Additive manufacturing 
• Shock Waves and Therapeutic Ultrasound/HIFU 
• Computer Assisted Laser surgery 
• Internet of Things (IOT) – Interoperability 
• Medical Apps 
• Surgical Process Modelling/Management/Monitoring
• Digital Operating Room

Research Focus / Type of Contribution

• New medical and surgical approaches or strategies
• Experimental and pre-clinical Evaluation
• Clinical Studies / Reviews of clinical trends
• Collaborative interdisciplinary studies
• Multicentre trials
• Clinical outcomes
• Education and Training
• New technologies, approaches, tools and components
• Open-source software and databases
• Morpho-functional imaging
• Multi-sensor fusion
• Efficient Clinical Pathways
• Data Mining
• Personalized Modelling
• Biomechanics
• Tele-medicine and at-home medicine
• Human-Machine-Interaction (HMI), Usability, Design and ergonomics
• Medical data security
• Health economics and legislation

Committees

Program Committee

• Joshua William Giles, Canada, University of Victoria (Programme Committee Chair)
• Aziliz Guezou-Philippe, France, IMT Atlantique (Programme Committee Vice-Chair)
• Matias de La Fuente, Germany, RWTH Aachen, Lehrstuhl für Medizintechnik
• Ilker  Hacihaliloglu, Canada, University of British Columbia
• Johann Henckel, United Kingdom, University College London
• Antony J. Hodgson, Canada, University of British Columbia Mechanical Engineering
• Leo Joskowicz, Israel, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem
• Brian Davies, United Kingdom, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia
• Ferdinando Rodriguez Y Baena, United Kingdom, Imperial College London
• Christopher Plaskos, United States, OMNI
• Branislav Jaramaz, United States, Smith & Nephew
• Klaus Radermacher, Germany, RWTH Aachen, Lehrstuhl für Medizintechnik
• Pruk Chaiyakit, Thailand, Orthopedic Department, Faculty of Medicine, Vajira Hospital, Navamindradhiraj University
• Masaki Takao, Japan, Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Osaka University Graduate School of Medicine
• Ryosuke Iio, Japan/Canada, Roth | McFarlane Hand and Upper Limb Centre, St Joseph's Health Care 
• Kristian Welle, Germany, Department of Orthopedics and Trauma Surgery, University Hospital of Bonn
• Arnaud Clavé, France, LaTIM INSERM, Brest
• Malte Asseln, Netherlands, University of Twente
• Sonja Ehreiser, Germany, MediCAD
• Matthew Hepinstall, United States, NYU Langone Orthopedics
• Guillaume Dardenne, France, INSERM
• Benjamin Hohlmann, Germany, Surgitaix
• Ping-Lang Yen, Taiwan, National Taiwan University
• Rishabh Sharma, United States, Hewlett Packard Enterprise
• Valérie Burdin, France, IMT Atlantique

Local Chair

• Dr. Masaki Takao, MD, Professor, Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Graduate School of Medicine, Ehime University

Publication

The Society supports open access publication of the proceedings via EasyChair's EPiC Series in Health Sciences. All accepted papers will be made available online via this route unless the Opt-Out option is ticked at submission time. Further information about the Series format, indexing and access information is available here.

Venue

The conference will be held in:

Matsuyama, Japan

Contact

All questions about submissions should be emailed to Prof Joshua W Giles, Chair of the Programme Committee of CAOS International:

jwgiles@uvic.ca