In this episode, host Ellen Lutnick, MD, is joined by Ronald Navarro, MD, FAAOS, to talk about occupational musculoskeletal problems among orthopaedic surgeons and why it's never too early to focus on preventing them.
Dr. Navarro shares how his interest in the topic began after seeing colleagues develop neck pain and cervical radiculopathy, some of whom ultimately required surgery. He discusses his published survey studies on occupation-related cervical spine disease, which found that older age, female sex, job stress, and greater surgeon experience were associated with neck problems.
The conversation highlights other common injuries in orthopaedic surgeons and how ergonomic factors – including body and equipment positioning, standing without breaks for long periods of time, and hammering – can contribute. Dr. Navarro emphasized that while most surgeons experience aches and pains throughout their career, they may not attribute them to OR ergonomics.
When should you seek evaluation for MSK pain (and why shouldn't you self-diagnose?? How can residents advocate for their physical safety? What can you do to protect your MSK health and surgical longevity? Listen to find out.
Guest: Ronald Navarro, MD, FAAOS, Sports Medicine Surgeon and Regional Chief of Orthopaedic Surgery, Southern California region, at Kaiser Permanente
Host: Ellen Lutnick, MD, AAOS Resident Assembly Executive Committee Chair
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