Programme
Programme and speakers subject to change
| 07h15-08h15 | Industry Breakfast Symposium – Inqaba Biotec Building BRICS: an epidemiologically relevant approach to HPV-based cervical cancer screening Dr Kreshalen Govender Venue: MR 1,60 |
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| 08h30-09h15 | Meet the sponsors / Open Trade
Venue: Exhibition Area |
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| 08h30-09h15 | Meet the Editor (SAJID)
Venue: MR 1,40 |
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| 09h15-09h30 | Plenary Session 1
Chairs: Nicolette du Plessis and Arifa Parker Venue: Ballroom West |
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| 09h15-09h30 | Welcome – Nicolette du Plessis | ||||
| 09h30-10h00 | Pioneering a proactive state of the art response to HIV – Sikhulile Moyo | ||||
| 10h00-10h30 | Host-Directed Therapies to treat TB lung damage – Mohlopheni Jackson Marakalala | ||||
| 10h30-11h00 | AMR in 2026 – Marc Mendelson | ||||
| 11h00-11h30 | Tea Break | ||||
| 11h30-13h30 | Session 1: Spotlight on Viruses: Past, Present, and Future Threats
Chairs: Wolfgang Preiser & Marietjie Venter Venue: MR 1,40 |
Session 2: TB Progress: Smarter Strategies, Sharper Solutions
Chairs: Mohlopheni Jackson Marakalala & Julie Copelyn Venue: Ballroom West |
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| 11h30-11h50 | Emerging virusses and virus host interactions -Shashank Tripathi | TB guidelines: An update on paediatric TB- Mo Archary | |||
| 11h50-12h10 | Understanding the origins of COVID 19 and evolution of variants of concern – Marietjie Venter | Navigating TB Adverse Drug Reactions – Halima Dawood | |||
| 12h10-12h30 | Characterising HIV infections in declining epidemics – Sikhulelo Moyo | TB vaccine update – Thomas Scriba | |||
| 12h30-12h50 | The risks posed by avian influenza viruses – Megan Shaw | New TB diagnostics – Grant Theron | |||
| 12h50-13h00 | 124 – Missed in Life, Found in Death: The Utility of Post-Mortem Minimally Invasive Tissue Sampling (MITS) in Diagnosing Malignancies in Adults with HIV in South Africa – Marguerite Hall | 129-Rapid TB and resistance detection in a single test – clinical evaluation of the STANDARD M10 MTB-RIF/INH assay on sputum and tongue swabs – Anura David | |||
| 13h00-13h10 | 100- Progress and Persistent Gaps in Early Infant HIV Care: A Multi-Year Cascade Analysis – Valentina Trivella | 169-Thalidomide as an Adjunctive Therapy for HIV-Tuberculosis-Associated Immune Reconstitution Inflammatory Syndrome: A Case Series – Scott Lee-Jones | |||
| 13h10-13h20 | 162 – Respiratory Virome Profiling in Sudden Unexpected Death in Infancy at Tygerberg Forensic Pathology Mortuary. – Rochelle Croucamp | 18 – Pre-existing isoniazid resistance and newly acquired rifampicin-resistant tuberculosis -Ruan Spies | |||
| 13h20-13h25 | 207 -A Comparative Metagenomic Investigation of the Viral Diversity in Faecal Samples from Malnourished and Non-Malnourished Children with Gastroenteritis admitted at King Edward VIII Hospital in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa – Marcelle Manyi | 113 -I491F rpoB gene mutations in isoniazid mono-resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis – Gabriel Vadivelu | |||
| 13h25-13h30 | Q & A | 194 -Predictors of Treatment Success Among Patients with Drug-Resistant Tuberculosis Receiving Bedaquiline-Based Regimens in a Rural South African Setting – Kgothatso Rakgate | |||
| 13h30-14h30 | Poster Viewing /Lunch
Venue: Exhibition Area |
Industry Sponored Lunch Symposium – Pfizer Comprehensive coverage of the current epidemiology profile of DTGNB in the SA context Dr. Warren Lowman Venue: MR 1,60 |
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| 14h30-16h30 | Session 3 – Sexually Transmitted Infections and HIV Chairs: Jeremy Nel & Victoria Howell Venue: MR 1,60 |
Session 4 – Vaccines: From Prevention to Resistance Chairs: Sipho Dlamini & Heather Finlayson Venue: Ballroom West |
Session 5 – Hard to Crack: Tackling Bone & Joint Infections Chairs: Justyna Wojno & Lyle Murray Venue: MR 1.43 -1,44 |
Session 6 – Barrier to Burden: Strengthening IPC Systems Chairs: Heidi Lee & Elizabeth Schoeman Venue: MR 1.41 -1,42 |
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| 14h30-14h50 | AMR in Neisseria gonorrhoeae and treatment options for resistant gonorrhoea – Ranmini Kularatne | The future of childhood vaccines- Rudzani Muloiwa | The importance of a multidisciplinary approach when managing complex bone and joint infections – Kevin Rebe | Panel discussion: Why IPC systems fail at the bedside? Elizabeth Schoeman, Tebogo Louw, Carika Pretorius and David Weber | |
| 14h50-15h10 | HIV associated Pneumocystis pneumonia: Ayanda Trevor Mnguni | Health care worker vaccination – Lerato Mpho Sikhosana | Surgical approaches for prosthetic joint infection management – Thomas Hilton | Economics of IPC – Counting the cost of weak systems – Liezl Henning | |
| 15h10-15h30 | Mycoplasma Genitalium: An update – Precious Mahlangu | Lifecourse vaccination – Sipho Dlamini | Candida prosthetic joint infections – Dr Ying Zhao | Optimizing laboratory testing in IPC – David Weber | |
| 15h30-15h50 | Non-tuberculous mycobacteria in advanced HIV – Halima Dawood | Vaccines for AMR: Denasha Reddy | Therapeutic drug monitoring of linezolid – Warren Lowman | The importance of IPC infrastructure and resources – Tracy Douglas | |
| 15h50-16h00 | 116 – Trends in Voluntary Medical Male Circumcision among men seeking Sexually Transmitted Infections service in South Africa, 2020 to 2025 – Nomfundo Banda | 117-Epidemiological Investigation of Measles Outbreak, Tshwane District, Gauteng Province, South Africa, June-July 2025. – Francinah Maoko | 141- Candida Colonisation in Critically Ill Patients: A Multi-Centre Prospective Cohort Study in Johannesburg, South Africa – Heilisha Dehaloo | 9-Genomic characterization of methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) clinical isolates from a suspected outbreak in a neonatal unit at an academic hospital in Johannesburg, South Africa – Rispah Chomba | |
| 16h00-16h10 | 187 – Empirical Prescribing for Opportunistic Infections in Hospitalized People with Advanced HIV Disease in South Africa: Findings from the ADVANCE GERMS-SA Cohort -Jean Philippe Suzor | 131-Molecular epidemiology and antimicrobial resistance profiles of Enterococcus species isolated from poultry production in South Africa – Ruth Mogokotleng | 133-Virulome and plasmid characterisation of hypervirulent Klebsiella pneumoniae isolates from the West – Amike De Villiers | 112-Ribotyping of South African Clostridioides difficile Isolates to Enhance Genomic Epidem – Hlambani Shirinda | |
| 16h10-16h20 | 84 – Role of Epigentic mechanisms in antimicrobial resistance and pathogenicity of clinical urogenital mycoplasmas -Winnie Ramaloko | 47-Human Papillomavirus Genotype Landscape Across Cervical Cytology Grades and Impact of HIV Among Women of Eastern Cape Province, South Africa – Sinazo Kondlo | 31-Digital disruption of antibiotic stewardship: implementation of a centralised technology-enabled clinical pharmacy model – Angeliki Messina | 166-Clinical characteristics and outcomes of invasive antimicrobial-resistant infections in infants <90 days of age – Raheema Adam | |
| 16h20-16h25 | 37-Guidelines uptake, acceptability of a new oral product, and patient pathway in South Africa regarding the sexually transmitted infections Neisseria gonorrhoeae and Chlamydia trachomatis – Camilla Wattrus | 170-Descriptive analysis of pertussis surveillance data in Ehlanzeni district, Mpumalanga Province, January 2018 – December 2024 – Lillian Mazibuko | 71-Antibiogram and efficacy of antibiotic regimens of bacterial isolates from bone and joint infections in South Africa – Justyna Wojno | 24-Genomic insights into antimicrobial resistance in colistin-resistant Gram-negative bloodstream isolates from a tertiary hospital in Soweto – Prenika Jaglal | |
| 16h25-16h30 | 102-A silent burden: MASLD and cardiometabolic risk in adolescents living with HIV -Michael Christie | Q & A | 67-Bloodstream infections in adult Intensive Care units across eThekwini KwaZulu-Natal Hospitals – Yesholata Mahabeer | 130-Integrating clinical and wastewater surveillance to track Candida auris in South Africa – Silondiwe Nzimande | |
| 16h30-17h00 | Refreshment Break (Exhibition Area) | ||||
| 17h00-18h00 | AGM -IDSSA
Venue: Ballroom West |
AGM – SASPID
Venue: MR1.41 – 1,42 |
AGM – SASCM
MR1.43 – 1,44 |
AGM – ICSSA
Venue: MR 1,61 – MR1,62 |
AGM – SASV
Venue: MR 1,631 – MR1,64 |
| 18h00-19h30 | FIDSSA AGM
Venue: Ballroom West |
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| Evening at leisure | |||||
| 07h00 | Registration
Venue: Ballroom Foyer |
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| 07h15-08h15 | Industry Sponosored Breakfast Symposium – Pro Med Diagnostics Fungal Fun Prof Mervyn Mer Venue: MR 1,60 |
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| 08h30-10h30 | Plenary Session 2 Chairs: Norma Bosman & Fikile Mabena Venue: Ballroom West |
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| 08h30-09h00 | Prioritising fungal infections – Nelesh Govender | |||
| 09h00-09h30 | Paediatric HIV – Mo Archary | |||
| 09h30-10h00 | Leading Beyond the Barrier – Building a Culture of IPC for the Future – David Weber | |||
| 10h00-10h15 | WINSAR launch – Vindana Chibabhai | |||
| 10h15-10h30 | SAASP Project feedback – Dena van Den Berg. | |||
| 10h30-11h00 | Refreshment Break / Poster viewing | |||
| 11:00-12:30 | Session 7 Young FIDSSA – Next Gen ID: Mentorship, Momentum, Mastery Chairs: Siphiwe Matukane & Khosi Ngobese Venue: MR 1.41 – 1,42 |
Session 8 – Managing infectious in compromised hosts: Burns, neutropenia and beyond Chairs: Justyna Wojno & David Weber Venue: Ballroom West |
Session 9 – Outbreak Alert: Tracking the Re-emerging Pathogens Chairs: Lerato Mpho Sikhosana & Lucille Blumberg Venue: MR 1,60 |
Session 10 – Forgotten No More: Spotlight on Neglected Diseases Chairs: Sipho Dlamini & Sikhulele Moyo Venue: MR 1.43 – 1,44 |
| 11h00-11h20 | Career development – Lerato Mpho Sikhosana, Precious Mahlangu, Gary Reubenson | Interdiscliplinary approach to Burns care – Arifa Parker | Tracking N.meningitidis in South Africa- Susan Meiring | Hydatid Disease in Southern Africa: When and how to do the PAIR procedure- Jeremy Nel |
| 11h20-11h40 | Cultivating a mindset for thriving in academia, clinical practice and our lives- Dena Van den Bergh | ID management of the neutropenic patient – Lyle Murray | Emergance of vaccine preventable diseases – Charlene Lawrence | Neglected tropical diseases: Progress, challenges and future directions-Sipho Dlamini |
| 11h40-11h50 | 179-Two cases of cutaneous toxigenic diphtheria – is there silent spread? -Jamie Colloty | Optimising antimicrobial dosing in vulnerable patients – Eric de Cloedt | Outbreaks and impact on Health systems – Heather Finlayson | Viral Hepatitis – Tongai Maponga |
| 11h50-12h00 | 43-Epidemiology and clinical characteristics of non-tuberculous mycobacteria in the Western Cape, South Africa: A retrospective laboratory surveillance study (2016–2022) – Christoffel Opperman | |||
| 12h00-12h10 | 16-Molecular typing and antimicrobial susceptibility testing of Group B Streptococcus clinical isolates in Pretoria – Olga Kgasha | 164-Phenotypic and Genomic Concordance of Antimicrobial Resistance in Invasive Nontyphoidal Salmonella from South Africa – Shannon Williams | 20-Whole genome sequencing of Salmonella Typhi isolated from an urban River in Johannesburg, South Africa. – Sanelisiwe Duze | 218-Are We Seeing Enough? Laboratory-Based Schistosomiasis Surveillance in South Africa – Bhavani Moodley |
| 12h10-12h20 | 104-An Unusual Pathogen: Oligella ureolytica Infection in South Africa- A case Report – Lughano Ghambi | 204-Pregnancy-Associated Invasive Group B Streptococcal Disease in South Africa, 2020–2024 – Nombulelo Nkabinde | 14-Risk factors for measles re-establishment after achieving elimination – David Durrheim | 79-Molecular and genomic characterisation of Campylobacter spp. isolated from pigs on a commercial farm in South Africa in 2019 – Michelle Lowe |
| 12h20-12h25 | 87 – Integrating Climate Information into Diarrhoeal Disease Preparedness: Opportunities for Climate-Informed Early Warning in South Africa, Botswana and Kenya – Janine Wichmann | 150-ECMO-Antimicrobial Dosing Conundrum – Rileen Strauss | 103-Genomic insights into non-typhoidal Salmonella from an urban river in Johannesburg, South Africa – Sanelisiwe Duze | 88-Improving detection of Balamuthia mandrillaris in South Africa through molecular diagn – Shareen Boughan |
| 12h25-12h30 | Q & A | 190-Tracking Measles and Rubella Risk in South Africa: A Public Dashboard – Grace Carmichael | 32-Onychomycosis in KwaZulu-Natal – is fluconazole still appropriate? – Yesholata Mahabeer | |
| 12h30-13h30 | Lunch / Poster Viewing into lunch
Venue: Exhibition Area |
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| 12h30-13h20 | Industry Sponsored Lunch Symposium – GSK Understanding the Varicella Zoster Virus Speaker 1: Prof Benjamin Kagina Speaker 2: TBC Venue: MR 1,60 |
Industry Lunch Symposium – Ceiphed Faster Answers, Better Outcomes: Managing GI Pathogens with Rapid PCR Dr Sheylyn Pillay, Pathologist: Microbiology, Ampath Laboratories Dipti Lallubhai, Senior Medical Affairs Manager, Cepheid Venue: MR1.41 -1,42 |
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| 13:30-15:00 | Plenary Session 3 Chair: Nelesh Govender Venue: Ballroom West |
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| 13h30-14h00 | Host-directed antivirals – Megan Shaw Artificial Intelligence in Infectious Diseases: Hype, Hope and Hard Reality – Nicolette du Plessis |
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| 14h00-14h30 | ||||
| 14h30-15h00 | Topical issues in the STI field – Ranmini Kularatne | |||
| 15h00-15h30 | Refreshment Break / Poster viewing | |||
| 15:30-17:00 | Session 11 – Decoding Disease: Diagnostics that Deliver Chairs: Norma Bosman & Kessendri Reddy Venue: MR 1.41 – 1,42 |
Session 12 – Global Moves, Local Risks: Travel & Migration Medicine Chairs: Susan Meiring & Gary Reubensen Venue: MR 1.43 – 1,44 |
Session 13 – AMR Unmasked: Fighting the Silent Pandemic Chairs: Vindana Chibabai & Lyle Murray Venue: MR 1,61 – 1,62 |
Session 14 – Paediatric ID Frontiers Chairs: Fikile Mabena & Julie Copelyn Venue: MR 1,63 – 1,64 |
| 15h30-15h50 | Diagnostic Stewardship in the Microbiology Laboratory -Ranmini Kularatne | When pathogen travel is visa dependent: the spread of meningococcus – Salim Parker |
AMR surveillance – what we know and what we don’t know in SA. Warren Lowman | Rethinking Empiric Therapy of Neonatal Sepsis: how to optimise bug-drug match in the era of AMR – Adrie Bekker |
| 15h50-16h10 | Helicobacter pylori: current trends and future insights – Dawood de Costa | Emerging travel infections on the horizon – Lucille Blumberg | MDR Klebsiella pneumoniae:novel approaches to tackle a formidable enemy – Denasha Reddy | Congenital syphilis update – Lisa Frigati |
| 16h10-16h30 | Point of care testing in Microbiology – Andrew Whitelaw | Diphtheria and human migration: Lessons to learn – Arifa Parker | AMR in hospital: huge mortality, lots of questions – Jeremy Nel | CMV in neonates and young children – Helena Rabie |
| 16h30-16h40 | 28-Vitek MS performance for Nocardia spp. Identification – Teena Thomas | 186-Factors Associated with Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices among Community Health Workers on Malaria Prevention and Control Measures in Bushbuckridge Sub-district, Mpumalanga Province, 2025 – Sizwe Khumalo | 77-Characterization of colistin-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae isolates from a tertiary-level hospit. – Anjali Silby | 8-Paediatric Pneumonia in the Eastern Cape: Epidemiology, Risk Factors and Outcomes from a Five-Year Hospital Study.- Olufunmilayo Olukemi Akapo |
| 16h40-16h50 | 93-False-positive Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex signals due to Mycobacterium kansasii cross-reactivity on the Roche cobas® MTB assay. – Christoffel Opperman | 209 – Meningococcal serogroup C disease outbreak in the West Coast District, Western Cape, South Africa, 2025 – Charlene Lawrence | 56-Distribution of van resistance genes among vancomycin-resistant enterococci in Gauteng, South Africa. – Michelle Lowe | 157-Viral infections in sudden and unexplained death in infancy cases admitted to the Tygerberg Forensi. – Corena De Beer |
| 16h50-16h55 | 23-High-resolution profiling reveals extensive co-colonisation and hidden serotype diversity of Klebsiella pneumoniae – Lara Van Der Merwe | 121-Probable odyssean malaria cluster in a non-endemic district of North West province, South Africa, October 2025 – Patricia Matamba | 118-Clinical Epidemiology of Invasive Acinetobacter Infections in Adults. – Sulaiman Hassan | 33-Neonatal Ventilator-Associated Pneumonia in a Quaternary Centre- a landscape of multi-drug resistance – Yesholata Mahabeer |
| 16h55-17h00 | 110-Epidemiological trends and patterns of hepatitis A in South Africa, 2019-2024: a national surveillance analysis.- Thobile Khanyile | Q & A | 128-Maternal-infant characteristics of preterm and term neonates with bloodstream infections in lower-tier hospitals in South Africa: a cross-sectional study- Vanessa Quan | |
| 19h00 | Conference Gala Dinner (Ballroom West) – Awards | |||
| 07h:15-08h15 | Registration / Tea Break
Venue: Ballroom Foyer |
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| 07h15-08h:15 | Industry Sponsored Breakfast Symposium – Beckman Coulter The Escalating Battle: AMR and Its Clinical Implications Prof. Olga Perovic Venue: MR 1,40 |
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| 08h30-10h00 | Session 15 – Tackling Complexity in Care Chairs: Halima Dawood & Norma Bosman Venue: MR1.40 |
Session 16 – One Health, One World: Crossing Species, Sharing Solutions Chairs: Wolfgang Preiser & Lucille Blumberg Venue: Ballroom West |
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| 08h30-08h50 | SNAP decisions: more than just a different vial- Kessendri Reddy | Rabies in Cape fur seals – Lesley van Helden | |
| 08h50-09h10 | Treatment of gram-negative infections in SA in 2026 – Andrew Whitelaw | Emerging zoonotic infections – Wolfang Preiser | |
| 09h10-09h30 | The in-patient management of the IV drug user – Lyle Murray | Climate Change and Infectious Disease – Cheryl Baxter | |
| 09h30-09h50 | Management of Candidaemia – Nelesh Govender | Living One Health – people, pathogens, pandemics, pasture and prey in practice. – Lucille Blumberg | |
| 09h50-10h00 | Q & A | Q & A | |
| 10h00-10h15 | Refreshment / Comfort Break (Ballroom East Foyer) | ||
| 10h15-11h00 | Plenary Session 4 Chairs: Nicolette Du Plessis & Arifa Parker
Venue: Ballroom West |
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| 10h15-11h00 | Rapporteur Session | ||
| 11h00-12h00 | Ethics – Bridging Inequities: Patient-Centered Approaches to Innovative Treatment Access – Marc Blockman | ||
| 12h00-12h15 | Closing remarks | ||
| 12h15-12h30 | Departure and light snacks | ||
| 13h30 | Workshop 1: Mycoses interest group Venue: Ballroom West | Workshop 2: WINSAR – Womenlift Health
Venue: MR 1,41 – MR 1,42 |
Workshop 3: SANOFI Venue: MR 1,43 – 1,44 |