The Corner Booth

The American Diabetes Association's annual conference, known as the ADA Scientific Sessions , is always the biggest diabetes event of the year, and 2021 marked the second time this 5-day congress was held completely online because of the lingering COVID-19 pandemic. When held in person, the conference normally convenes roughly 16,000 physicians, researchers, and diabetes industry experts from across the globe. This 81st annual event drew 11,600 people from 119 countries between June 25 and 29 — slightly lower than the 12,527 registered attendees for the 2020 virtual event. For both, the event organizers expected more people to tune in afterward, thanks to the recorded online sessions being made available for up to 3 months following the conference. Despite its virtual nature, this year's conference included nearly 200 presentations with more than 900 presenters on any range of topics. And to top it off, there were roughly 1,100 research posters delving into the latest ...

Like everything else in 2020, the biggest diabetes conference of the year was anything but normal. The American Diabetes Association's 80th annual Scientific Sessions were, for the first time ever, held completely online as a sprawling, fast-paced, virtual streaming experience. Thousands of medical professionals from across the globe tuned in for the five-day event, June 12 through 16, many in casual clothes rather than professional conference attire — from their kitchens, living rooms, and home offices with curious kids, home decor, and pets popping in occasionally. So it goes in 2020, as the world navigates the ripple effects of a global pandemic that's catapulted us into virtual business and telehealth mode. The SciSessions have been held as a huge in-person gathering consecutively since the org's founding in June 1940, with the single exception during World War II when the conference was not held. "There was a lot of trepidation about what this yea...