Orthopedic surgery or orthopedics (also spelled orthopaedics) is the branch of surgery concerned with conditions involving the musculoskeletal system. Orthopedic surgeons use both surgical and non-surgical means to treat musculoskeletal trauma, sports injuries, degenerative diseases, infections, tumors, and congenital conditions.
By wearing a unique weighted back support device and participating in a special exercise program, women over 60 with osteoporosis-caused curvature of the spine improved their balance and experienced diminished back pain, giving researchers at Mayo Clinic a promising therapy to reduce falls among this population.
The cellular signaling protein Wnt, which is involved in embryonic development and cancer, contributes to disease progression of both rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis.
Using a database of nearly 1 million Americans who underwent major joint replacement surgery, a team led by researchers at Duke University Medical Center have determined those surgical patients with diabetes, hypertension or obesity were significantly more likely to suffer post-operative complications.
The prolonged immobility of flight passengers during long-haul air travel increases the risk of developing blood clots, which could prove fatal especially to people whose travel occurs just prior to major surgery, medical researchers report in the current issue of Mayo Clinic Proceedings.
Effective, non-invasive and practically without side effects - extracorporeal shock wave therapy has demonstrated impressive results not only in orthopedics and traumatology, but also in treating fresh and chronic wounds as well as circulatory disorders of the myocardial muscle.
More than 90 percent of surveyed physicians in Pennsylvania reported defensive medicine practices such as over-ordering of diagnostic tests, unnecessary referrals and avoidance of high-risk patients, according to a study in the June 1 issue of JAMA.
Exercise in cold water instead of warm water may increase people's appetites, making it harder for them to lose extra pounds, a University of Florida study finds.
A recent study found that tumors of the pituitary gland are more common than many health care professionals realize, with national prevalence rates averaging 16.7 percent. To neurosurgeon Dr. Gail Rosseau, this isn't surprising.
America's expanding waistline is straining its knees--and pocketbook--with hundreds of thousands of overweight people undergoing surgery every year because the extra pounds they pack are leading to tears in their meniscal cartilage.
Pioneering research with combined positron emission tomography (PET) and computed tomography (CT) scans provides accurate detection and localization of foot infection in diabetic patients, according to an article in the March issue of the Journal of Nuclear Medicine.
Global nanotechnology company pSivida Limited has announced that it has signed an agreement with US based PureTech Development LLC to investigate and evaluate out-licensing opportunities for BioSilicon with an emphasis on tissue engineering, wound management and orthopedics.
New technologies may offer new treatment options for some patients with degenerative back problems, according to research presented at the 72nd Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons. These latest innovations in spinal surgery could provide promise for hundreds of thousands of U.S. patients who undergo spinal surgery each year.
New research presented today at the 72nd Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons includes important findings on the causes of anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries in female athletes, such as posture and body movement. These findings may be key in the effort to find ways to prevent these types of injuries.
New imaging technologies are enabling doctors to not only diagnose a variety of orthopaedic and musculoskeletal conditions with more accuracy, but also to determine with unprecedented precision whether clinical recovery from bone, joint or tendon damage is actually complete and not simply a "placebo effect."
Two separate new studies presented at a major medical meeting provide objective scientific evidence that the two most commonly performed cartilage repair techniques are effective at restoring patient mobility and reducing pain.
Leaping tall buildings in a single bound may be out of the question, but the genetically engineered "supermice" in Ormond MacDougald's laboratory at the University of Michigan Medical School are definitely stronger than average.
Duke University Medical Center researchers have found that joints whose cartilage lacks a specific type of collagen will develop osteoarthritis – the so-called "wear-and-tear" form of the disease – at a greatly accelerated rate.
Adhesions – bands of scar tissue that bind together two internal body surfaces – develop in 55 percent to more than 90 percent of patients undergoing surgery, depending on the type of operation. They are part of normal healing, but when surfaces fuse together that shouldn't, serious pain and complications can result.
Genzyme announced today that it has filed a lawsuit in the District Court of Tel Aviv alleging that Transkaryotic Therapies Inc. has infringed Genzyme's Israeli patent No. 100,715, which covers certain cell culture processes involved in the manufacture of glucocerebrosidase.
Corticosteroids can be beneficial in the treatment of Duchenne muscular dystrophy and can be offered as a treatment option, according to the American Academy of Neurology and the Child Neurology Society in a new practice guideline published in the January 11 issue of Neurology, the scientific journal of the American Academy of Neurology.