Our Services and Treatments

About Orthopaedics

The discipline of Orthopaedics deals with surgical conditions - both traumatic and non-traumatic - that affect the musculo-skeletal system.

The musculo-skeletal system consists primarily of bones, joints, muscles, tendons, nerves and all other structures that are involved in movement.

The orthopaedic mantra is ‘life is movement, movement is life’.

As such the discipline of orthopaedics covers both the upper and lower limbs including the shoulders and pelvis as well as the spine. It does not include the bones and joints of the chest and the head/face as these parts of the musculo-skeletal system are not responsible for changing your position in space.

In general, there are three overlapping peaks for orthopaedic presentations.

Symptoms of Orthopedic Conditions

Pain, impaired function and deformity are the three most common symptoms of an orthopaedic condition. Patients can present with any one of these symptoms or a combination of them.

One of the commonest causes for patients to seek an Orthopaedic Surgeon is a fracture or a dislocation. When a bone breaks and loses its continuity, it is referred to as a fracture. When this happens in a joint it is called a dislocation. These two conditions generally result in all three of the above symptoms.

One of the most common questions that confront most of us after an injury is - How do I know if I have a fracture? Or more importantly not have a fracture!

Fractures occur when a force which is higher than the capacity a particular bone can withstand is applied to it.

Our musculo-skeletal system has evolved over thousands of years to what it is today. It has unique features that allow growth to take place in childhood while maintaining its structural strength and integrity. We fall continuously throughout our childhood while learning to walk, run, jump, etc. Therefore, falls while walking, running, etc. rarely will result in a fracture. Swelling that appears right after a fall is due to bleeding. It is extremely unusual for a fracture to occur in the absence of a significant amount of swelling, though the converse is not always the case. Ankle sprains are a case in point where significant swelling is seen in the absence of a fracture.

If you got up and walked after a fall it is unlikely that you will have a fracture. Ask yourself, ‘How do I feel? How does this fall, pain compare to my previous experience? How do my limbs move? Is there anything that I can’t do after the fall? Is there a particular restriction to my movements?’

If you are unconvinced that you have a fracture wait a day or two. There are always exceptions to the rule, but the vast majority of ‘trivial’ injuries will improve over the next few days. Falls on to an outstretched hand are probably the exception to this rule, especially if it has happened from a ‘height’ and the entire force of the fall has been absorbed by the hand.

It is important to realise that as we get older, especially after 60 years or so, our bones become weaker. Therefore, the degree of energy required to cause a fracture gets less and less. As an axiom: if an elderly person cannot walk, following a fall, they have a hip fracture until proven otherwise.