PRINCIPLES OF ORTHOPEDIC SURGERY

General Principles of Orthopedic Injuries

Patients with orthopedic injuries and nontraumatic musculoskeletal disorders compose a large portion of the more than 100 million patients who come to U.S. emergency departments (EDs) annually. Although only rarely life-threatening, orthopedic injuries may threaten a limb or its function, and accurate early diagnosis and treatment can avert long-term complications. Many of these injuries can an...

Orthopedic Surgery

Orthopedic surgery.

Orthopedic surgery is a specialty of surgery dedicated to the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of diseases and injuries of the musculoskeletal system in all age groups. Careers in orthopedic surgery span the spectrum from general orthopedics to those of subspecialty expertise in orthopedic trauma, hand, pediatrics, total joint, foot and ankle, sports medicine, and oncology to name a few.

Greening of orthopedic surgery.

Every year, 4 billion pounds of waste are produced by health care facilities, and the amount continues to increase annually. In response, a movement toward greening health care has been building, with a particular focus on the operating room. Between 20% and 70% of health care waste originates from a hospital's operating room, and up to 90% of operating room waste is improperly sorted and sent ...

Driving after orthopedic surgery.

EDUCATIONAL OBJECTIVES As a result of reading this article, physicians should be able to: (1) Identify preoperative factors that may contribute to a patient's ability to return to driving after orthopedic surgery. (2) Understand the role of upper-extremity immobilization and how it may impair a patient's ability to operate a motor vehicle. (3) Recognize how various forms of lower-extremity immo...