For the past five years, the Italian Arthroscopy Association (Societa Italiana di Artroscopia or SIA) has sponsored instructional courses for knee and shoulder surgery at the Orthopaedic Learning Center (OLC) in Rosemont, Ill. But this year, for the first time ever, the AAOS will join the international society as a cosponsor of the course.

“We are absolutely delighted that this proposal met the terms and conditions required by AAOS and are most enthusiastic to expand collaborations in the future” said Pietro M. Tonino, MD, the U.S. course director, and his Italian colleague Dr. Roberto Vianello during a recent planning meeting in San Diego.

The two previously served as the SIA course directors, instructing more than 250 Italian orthopaedists on surgical techniques for knee and shoulder injuries. They also originated the proposal to make the course a collaborative effort with AAOS. Miguel E. Cabanela, MD, chair of the AAOS International Committee; Edward Akelman, MD, chair of the CME Courses Committee, and AAOS staff serving these committees helped make the proposal a reality.

The 2007 program, which will be held Sept. 30-Oct. 3, will focus on shoulder and elbow surgery. The course is designed to be 90 percent laboratory-focused; participants will hone their skills on cadaveric specimens and have the opportunity to use the most recent technical devices available for shoulder and elbow surgery. Lectures will be held prior to the laboratory sessions and pro-and-con debate discussion sessions will follow the presentations. New technologies and complex cases will also be discussed. In addition, this year’s participants will have the opportunity to practice knot tying and try new biomaterials on the shoulder models in a classroom environment.

English will be the primary spoken language; the faculty will include experts from the AAOS as well as members of the SIA Board of Directors. The Italian faculty will be present during all laboratory sessions. Because of the advanced nature of this offering, this year’s course will be available only to previous participants in SIA advanced courses. Future collaborations may be open to physicians from across the globe.

The SIA “gratefully thanks the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons for this opportunity,” noted Dr. Vianello, who also thanked “our industry partners, for without their support, this type of course would not be possible.”

Lynn Dowling is the director of the AAOS international department. She can be reached at dowling@aaos.org