they are considered an abstract, and although they are selected through a review process, they are not even close to being a peer reviewed manuscript publication... not all abstracts are followed up by papers, but some are, and some journals, which have specific associations with meetings, will offer accelerated tracks for publication for abstracts presented at their meetings....but they still have to undergo peer review....
...any proof of research accomplishment (external funding, abstracts, papers etc) helps the application...
