Orthopedics is a surgery course that deals with musculoskeletal system. Orthopedists may use surgical means, non surgical or both when they are treating injured patients or patients who have degenerative diseases, congenital disorders or tumors. To become a Maryland orthopedic surgeon is a hard task. It all starts with studies where a person must study for four years as an undergraduate and also four years in medical school.
After studying the course for four years in medical school, a person is required to do a further five in residency training. One year is for practicing general surgery and the other four are specifically for orthopedic practice. An orthopedist may wish to do fellowships after doing residency training. It takes one year or two at most. Musculoskeletal oncology, hand surgery, arthroplasty, spine injury, shoulder and elbow surgery and pediatric orthopedics are some of the subspecialties covered in orthopedics.
Some of these subspecialties also fall in other surgical medical categories. Hand surgery for example is not only carried out by orthopedists but also by plastic surgeons. Spine, ankle and foot surgeries are also good examples of surgeries that can be carried out by multiple physicians. Licensed Doctors of Podiatric Medicine can do foot and ankle surgeries while spine injuries surgeries can be done by neurosurgeons. To fully be acknowledged as an orthopedic surgeon, it is necessary to be certified by the American Board of Medical Specialties or American Osteopathic Association Bureau of Osteopathic Specialists.
A person must sit for exams set by these boards. He must do oral and written exams which aim to test his clinical and surgical performance over a time period of six months. These boards set the standards high by requiring students to excel in the exams with almost perfect scores because of the logic that there cannot be any mistake done when operating on a patient.
Many orthopedists tend to use arthroscopy when giving treatment to injured patients. The technique is known to quicken the recovery process than an open surgery which forces a patient to take months in recovery process. Knee arthroscopy is one of the common examples of this technique and is sometime used together with meniscectomy or chondroplasty.
Arthroplasty is another technique widely used by orthopedic physicians in surgeries. It is a technique that replaces joints with other materials such as high density polythene or metals. This is one of the techniques you may have to choose when you need your hip joint to be replaced. The method may also work well for spinal joint, elbow joint or wrist joint.
If orthopedic surgery is the profession you want to master, begin with carrying out a research on the different specialties that it has. Also conduct a research on the fee needed to do the course. The fees for most medical courses are high however.
You should not be discouraged though by the high fee amounts. You should find out from people around your neighborhood if there are education organizations that offer sponsorships or education loans. One of the most important steps in becoming a Maryland orthopedic surgeon is excelling in final high school exams particularly in science subjects.
After studying the course for four years in medical school, a person is required to do a further five in residency training. One year is for practicing general surgery and the other four are specifically for orthopedic practice. An orthopedist may wish to do fellowships after doing residency training. It takes one year or two at most. Musculoskeletal oncology, hand surgery, arthroplasty, spine injury, shoulder and elbow surgery and pediatric orthopedics are some of the subspecialties covered in orthopedics.
Some of these subspecialties also fall in other surgical medical categories. Hand surgery for example is not only carried out by orthopedists but also by plastic surgeons. Spine, ankle and foot surgeries are also good examples of surgeries that can be carried out by multiple physicians. Licensed Doctors of Podiatric Medicine can do foot and ankle surgeries while spine injuries surgeries can be done by neurosurgeons. To fully be acknowledged as an orthopedic surgeon, it is necessary to be certified by the American Board of Medical Specialties or American Osteopathic Association Bureau of Osteopathic Specialists.
A person must sit for exams set by these boards. He must do oral and written exams which aim to test his clinical and surgical performance over a time period of six months. These boards set the standards high by requiring students to excel in the exams with almost perfect scores because of the logic that there cannot be any mistake done when operating on a patient.
Many orthopedists tend to use arthroscopy when giving treatment to injured patients. The technique is known to quicken the recovery process than an open surgery which forces a patient to take months in recovery process. Knee arthroscopy is one of the common examples of this technique and is sometime used together with meniscectomy or chondroplasty.
Arthroplasty is another technique widely used by orthopedic physicians in surgeries. It is a technique that replaces joints with other materials such as high density polythene or metals. This is one of the techniques you may have to choose when you need your hip joint to be replaced. The method may also work well for spinal joint, elbow joint or wrist joint.
If orthopedic surgery is the profession you want to master, begin with carrying out a research on the different specialties that it has. Also conduct a research on the fee needed to do the course. The fees for most medical courses are high however.
You should not be discouraged though by the high fee amounts. You should find out from people around your neighborhood if there are education organizations that offer sponsorships or education loans. One of the most important steps in becoming a Maryland orthopedic surgeon is excelling in final high school exams particularly in science subjects.
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