The first Extremity War Injuries (EWI) symposium, hosted by the AAOS and the Orthopaedic Trauma Association (OTA), was held in January 2006. The symposium defined the current knowledge of the management of extremity war wounds and outlined future research directions.

AAOS and OTA fellows continued their work with military orthopaedic surgeons and organized a second symposium in January 2007. EWI II: Development of Clinical Treatment Principles provided updates on relevant research efforts, examined new challenges faced overseas, and most significantly, developed new clinical treatment algorithms.

With the additional support of the Society of Military Orthopaedic Surgeons, EWI III shed light on research findings in the areas of soft-tissue defects, segmental bone defects, open tibial shaft fractures, and massive periarticular reconstructions. Attendance at this third EWI symposium was at an all-time high, and included AAOS President James H. Beaty, MD; First Vice-President E. Anthony Rankin, MD; and Second Vice-President Joseph D. Zuckerman, MD, as well as recent and scheduled Landstuhl Visiting Scholars.

Among the administration officials and members of Congress who attended EWI III were Adm. Michael Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff; S. Ward Casscells, MD, assistant secretary of defense for health affairs; Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa; and Reps. Tom Latham, R-Iowa; C.A. Dutch Ruppersberger, D-Md.; and Tim Walz, D-Minn.

Also attending were Stephen I. Katz, MD, PhD, director, National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS); David Chu, PhD, under secretary of defense for personnel and readiness; Charles L. Rice, MD, president, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences; Rear Adm. Thomas R. Cullison, MD, deputy surgeon general for the Navy; Maj. Gen. Charles Bruce Green, MD, deputy Air Force surgeon general; Lt. Gen. James Roudebush, MD, U.S. Air Force surgeon general; and Maj. Gen. George W. Weightman, MD, commanding general of the U.S. Army Medical Research and Materiel Command.

The symposium also attracted government officials from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, NIAMS, the National Center for Medical Rehabilitation Research, the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, and the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Industry supporters of the symposium included Kinetic Concepts, Inc. (Gold level sponsor), and Medtronic, Smith & Nephew Trauma, Stryker, Synthes, and Zimmer (Silver level sponsors). Additional support was provided by DePuy.

Bipartisan support for OETRP
In both the U.S. House and Senate, there is bipartisan support for full funding of the Orthopaedic Extremity Trauma Research Program (OETRP). As of the date AAOS Now went to print, the following individuals had signed the “Dear Colleague” letter urging support for an annual operating level of $50 million in fiscal year 2008 through supplemental appropriations for OETRP.

House supporters
Rep. Tom Latham, R-Iowa
Rep. C.A. Dutch Ruppersberger, D-Md.
Rep. Shelley Berkley, D-Nev.
Rep. Sanford Bishop, D-Ga.
Rep. Bob Filner, D-Cal.
Rep. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y.
Rep. Rubén Hinojosa, D-Texas
Rep. David Loebsack, D-Iowa
Rep. James McGovern, D-Mass.
Rep. Pete Sessions, R-Texas
Rep. Mike Simpson, R-Idaho
Rep. Chris Smith, R-N.J.
Rep. Betty Sutton, D-Ohio
Rep. Tim Walz, D-Minn.
Rep. Heather Wilson, R-N.M.  

Senate supporters
Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa
Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, R-Texas
Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo.
Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio
Sen. Benjamin L. Cardin, D-Md.
Sen. Saxby Chambliss, R-Ga.
Sen. Norm Coleman, R-Minn.
Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas
Sen. Richard Durbin, D-Ill.
Sen. Johnny Isakson, R-Ga.
Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, D-Mass.
Sen. Barbara A. Mikulski, D-Md.
Sen. Debbie Stabenow, D-Mich.