All of us are prone to slips trips and falls. Health and Safety training in practically any workplace will have covered the possibility of an accident happening just in the regular course of our daily lives by virtue of us humans just doing what we do. Most of the time we’re lucky enough to get away with an artificial scrape or bruise and are able to continue without any significant alterations, but occasionally there are times when something more serious occurs and the consequences can be life changing. In fact, pain within the musculoskeletal system is the primary reason why people seek out medical help.
When you think about it, sometimes it doesn’t take much to cause yourself an injury. Lifting something incorrectly, twisting in the wrong direction or just being in the wrong place at the wrong time. If movement is involved there is the possibility of something happening to cause trauma to your body. If you experience a slight twinge when you move in a certain way or you’re just not moving as freely as normal, you may have picked up an injury somewhere. It’s extremely easy to do, and sometimes it can happen without you even realising it.
Of course, not all injuries are catastrophic. We don’t want to focus exclusively on the worst case scenario here. Some may just require a period of time to heal. With the right treatment there are some injuries and conditions that can be helped significantly. Chances are if you are one of the unlucky 2.3 million people worldwide that suffer accidents in the workplace every year you will have needed the services of an orthopaedic surgeon. When we think of surgery our minds immediately envisage scenes from a medical drama. Scrubbed up surgeons in gowns and masks, sharp metal instruments and general anaesthesia. However, specialist orthopaedic surgeons do not travel exclusively down the surgery route. In fact, there are lots of different ways they have to help people that have either sustained an injury or developed conditions, that do not involve surgery. If you are wondering whether you need their services here is what they do and how they do it.
Orthopaedic surgeons specialise in the musculoskeletal system. This means that they deal with diagnosis and treatment of any conditions that effect your bones, muscles, tendons, ligaments joints and cartilage. Basically anything that contributes to keeping you moving, an orthopaedic surgeon is who you need to see. Your treatment may well be limited to a daily exercise regime to alleviate symptoms without the intervention of medication. If you’re concerned about the amount of pills you’re taking for an ongoing condition such as arthritis it may be worth looking into seeing if your local orthopaedic surgeon can come up with some alternative treatments. Regular exercise has often be recommended by healthcare professionals to alleviate symptoms but an orthopaedic surgeon will be able to recommend ones that are specifically targeted at helping your problem area.
If your condition or injury is a little more serious then the surgical route may be the only option. Surgery does not always have to be invasive, however there are procedures that will inevitably require major surgery and long recovery times. Orthopaedic surgeons also take responsibility for joint replacements, the most common being hip or knee. Injury wise if you have a particularly bad fracture this may require a range of procedures and tools to help you retain as much movement in the joint as possible. This may be either internal or external pins and plates or frames and may require a period of immobilization where the limb is kept in one position for a prolonged period of time to allow it to heal. It is important to remember that there are solutions to your injury. There are ways of alleviating pain and you do not have to suffer any more than is absolutely necessary.
Sometimes all that may be needed is a change of lifestyle. For example a change in your exercise regime to prevent aggravating an injury. Most people tend to believe that rest is the cure for all ills. On the contrary sometimes this can prevent you from regaining the fluidity of movement you will have had previously, so consulting an orthopaedic surgeon on these occasions would be the most sensible thing to do. Orthopaedic surgeons have extensive training Most of all, the important thing is not to suffer in silence, or try and ignore the pain, hoping it will go away. There is help out there and an orthopaedic surgeon is the person you need to see. Everything from suffering an injury at work, to progressive conditions such as arthritis, even something as severe as bone cancer. If you want to keep moving, an orthopaedic surgeon will help get you back on track.