Annual event addresses unique challenges of pediatric orthopaedic care

Recognized as the premier educational event for pediatric orthopaedists, the 6th Annual International Pediatric Orthopaedic Symposium (IPOS) is set for Dec. 2–5, 2009, in Orlando, Fla.

Presented by the AAOS and the Pediatric Orthopaedic Society of North America (POSNA), the 4-day IPOS program is dedicated to the treatment of orthopaedic conditions in children and young adults. “IPOS is a unique annual educational event designed to showcase a broad spectrum of cutting-edge pediatric orthopaedics in a highly interactive environment,” says John M. Flynn, MD, course director.

Under the direction of 60 national and international pediatric orthopaedic experts, IPOS features lectures, interactive case discussions, customizable breakout sessions, and industry workshops—some with hands-on components. All areas of pediatric orthopaedics—including sports medicine, trauma, spine, hip, upper extremity, and more—will be covered, according to Dr. Flynn.

Special guests include George A. Paletta Jr., MD, team physician for the St. Louis Cardinals baseball team; Muharrem Yazici, MD, professor of orthopaedics at Hacettepe University in Ankara, Turkey; and Deborah Eastwood, surgical consultant at the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital in the United Kingdom.

Dr. Flynn notes that the fully international faculty is among the special attractions of IPOS. “These visiting surgeons bring a unique perspective of care in their own countries and actively debate with the U.S. faculty on the optimal care for different problems,” he says. “[They] bring cutting-edge and out-of-the-box ideas that are not yet popular in the United States. Ideas and techniques such as Ponseti casting and surgical dislocation for unstable slipped capital femoral epiphysis were showcased at IPOS years before they became popular in practice in the United States.”

Focus areas
This year’s IPOS features a special focus on developmental dysplasia of the hip from birth to 5 years of age, upper extremity injuries in the young athlete, and the surgical management of fractures and fracture complications. Main sessions will also address concepts and controversies in bad bone and related syndromes, limb deformity surgery, and knee and foot disorders in the young athlete.

As always, the symposium, which is designed for orthopaedic surgeons at all career stages, will also cover core material in pediatric orthopaedics, with several overview instructional courses. A marquee event of IPOS 2009 will be a combined session with the Shriner’s Hospital Spinal Cord Injury Conference, featuring lectures and case discussions.

“One of the unique features of IPOS is the fact that attendees can custom design their learning experience by selecting the workshops and breakouts that most interest them,” says Dr. Flynn. “The workshops are designed to be at a very high level, focusing specifically on complex decision-making and surgical management.”

Whether you are an experienced orthopaedic surgeon, resident, fellow, or allied health provider, if your practice includes children or young athletes, this symposium prepares you to meet the diagnostic, procedural, and management challenges of their care needs.

Call for posters
Poster submissions are now being accepted for IPOS. To obtain an application form, please send an e-mail request to Susan.Pappas@orlandohealth.com, or fax your request to (321) 843-5298. The deadline for poster submissions is Oct. 30, 2009. To obtain symposium information or to register, visit www.aaos.org/IPOS