Health Care Providers: Orthopedists

What Is Orthopedics?

Orthopedics (or-tho-PEE-diks) is health care that corrects or prevents problems or injuries of the musculoskeletal system — our bones, joints, muscles, tendons, and ligaments.

What Is an Orthopedist?

An orthopedist (or-tho-PEE-dist), or orthopedic surgeon, studies, diagnoses, and treats conditions that affect muscles, joints, and bones, such as infections, sports injuries, broken bones, and joint problems.

Why Would Someone Need One?

Orthopedists help people with problems such as:

• bone fractures
• injuries, including sports injuries
• bone tumors
• scoliosis
• cerebral palsy
• clubfoot
• hip disorders such as developmental dysplasia of the hip
• limb length discrepancies and other limb differences
• osteogenesis imperfecta (brittle bone disease)