Tuesday 2 July 2013

What It Takes To Become A Maryland Orthopedic Surgeon

By Lana Bray


A branch of surgery that is concerned with musculoskeletal system is known as orthopedics. An orthopedist uses non surgical or surgical methods of providing treatment to injured patients or to patients who are victims of tumors, degenerative diseases or congenital disorders. Becoming a Maryland orthopedic surgeon is not an easy task. It all begins with education where an individual must undergo four years of study as an undergraduate and another four in medical school.

After graduating from medical school, there is another five years that needs to be done in residency training. In these five years, one is for general surgery and the rest are for practice in orthopedic surgery. An orthopedist may also consider doing fellowships after getting done with residency training. Fellowship training takes a year or two in orthopedics. Some of the subspecialties in orthopedics are pediatric orthopedics, elbow and shoulder surgery, musculoskeletal oncology, arthroplasty, hand surgery and spine surgery among others.

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.

It is necessary to sit for exams created by these boards. Usually, the boards set oral and written exams which are meant for testing the surgical and clinical performance of an orthopedist over a period of six months. The boards specify that it is a must for anyone who is aspiring to become an orthopedic surgeon to excel in these tests due to the reasoning that errors are not allowed when treating patients.

One of the common techniques used by an orthopedic surgeon in treating an injured patient is arthroscopy. It helps a patient to recover from a surgery in a short period of time contrary to open surgery which may force the patient to take a long time in recuperating. Knee arthroscopy which is one of the well known medical procedures where arthroscopy is employed is sometimes combined with chondroplasty or meniscectomy for a more effective treatment.

Arthroplasty is also a popular medical procedure used by orthopedists. It is a procedure that aims to replace a joint with another material such as a metal or a high density polythene. If you need a replacement for your hip joint for instance, one of the treatments that you may be offered to choose is arthroplasty. Other joints that may call for an arthroplasty type of treatment are elbow joints, wrist joints and spine joints.

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.

The high amounts of fees should not discourage you if this is your top choice career. Look for education loans from various education organizations around your area of residence or sponsorship deals. It is important however that you should obtain high grades in high school especially in science subjects if you aspire to become a Maryland orthopedic surgeon.




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