Sports Medicine Conference concludes

The second edition of the UAE Sports Medicine Conference, organised by the Emirates Society of Sports Medicine and Rehabilitation, concluded with great success.

The event was hosted by Mohammed Bin Rashid University of Medicine and Health Sciences in Dubai Healthcare City and witnessed broad national and international participation, attracting over 600 specialists from 25 countries across different continents.

The two-day conference featured 53 speakers — a selection of top doctors and specialists from hospitals, medical centers, and universities — who presented 10 main sessions, five specialised workshops, and 66 research and applied papers. These covered the latest developments in sports medicine, rehabilitation, technology and AI applications in sports, athletic development, performance testing, women’s sports, regenerative medicine, and Paralympic sports.

Dr. Abdulla Alrahoomi, President of the Emirates Society of Sports Medicine and Rehabilitation and Chairman of the Organizing Committee, said: “We are delighted with the great success achieved by the second edition of the conference in terms of participation, research quality, and presentations, as well as the positive feedback we received from speakers and participants alike. We will begin preparations now for the third edition, which will be held in 2026.”

He added: “At the conclusion of the conference, the scientific committee held a meeting to approve the final recommendations, which were summarized and selected based on what was presented during the ten sessions and the subsequent open discussions. A total of six recommendations were adopted. We will work with partners and relevant governmental and sports entities to transform these recommendations into practical initiatives and programs that contribute to the development of sports medicine and rehabilitation.”

The six recommendations focused on enhancing performance across several key topics.

In football medicine despite improvements in diagnosing and treating muscle injuries over the past two decades, there is still a gap in classification systems that accurately determine both injury severity and the precise timeline for return to play—critical factors in treatment planning.

There is also a lack of international consensus on managing severe tendon and muscle injuries, whether surgically or conservatively, as decisions are often made on a case-by-case basis.

Young Investigator Award: The conference continued its tradition of honoring outstanding contributors in sports and exercise medicine.

At the conclusion of its second edition, Emirati researcher Maryam Al Shehhi, a sports medicine and physiotherapy specialist at the Sharjah Women’s Sports, was awarded the Young Investigator Award in Sports & Exercise Medicine.

Her winning research, ‘Lower Limb Asymmetry and Change of Direction Performance: An Integrative Analysis of Explosive Strength Metrics in Female Athletes.