Traumatologist

The traumatologist is the doctor specializing in treatment of mechanical damages and degenerative and dystrophic diseases of joints and bones which result from disturbance of food of tissue of joint cartilage and, as a result, loss of elasticity and elasticity. In other words the traumatologist (from the Greek words: "trauma, traumatos" – a wound, damage and "logos" – the doctrine) is a specialist in questions of diagnosis, treatment and prevention of the disturbances of a musculoskeletal system resulting from injuries or other diseases.

Reasons of the address to the traumatologist

According to traumatologists, fractures of bones, on the second place – ruptures of sinews, on the third – dislocations are the most frequent reasons of the request for their professional help.

Growth of the injuries connected with the road accidents is around the world noted, also injuries often accompany many sports. So, according to the rating of the Forbes magazine, in the USA entered ten the most injury-causing sports:

• Basketball;
• Cycling;
• American soccer;
• Motorcycle sport;
• Baseball;
• Fitness;
• Soccer;
• Diving;
• Ski race;
• Snowboarding;
• Rugby.

Except athletes, quite often the so-called risk group on emergence of traumatic damages into which elderly people, and also patients with a lack of calcium and vitamin D – the substances participating in synthesis of a bone tissue and providing its durability and stability get also needs consultation of the traumatologist.

One more category of patients, alas, which is often getting on reception to the traumatologist is children. Children are mobile, active, and sense of danger and self-preservation at them is developed insufficiently, as a result – a large number of children's injuries and need of the address to the children's traumatologist.

Field of activity of traumatologists

The traumatologist carries out diagnosis and treatment of the following diseases:

• Changes;
• Bruises;
• Dislocations;
• Stretchings and ruptures of sheaves;
• Arthritises and arthroses;
• Osteoporosis;
• Osteomyelitis of bones;
• Tumors of bones.

Reception of the traumatologist

On outpatient appointment to the traumatologist it is possible to get in traumatologic offices (departments) of policlinics and in emergency stations. By results of consultation of the traumatologist the issue of hospitalization of the patient or his treatment in out-patient conditions can be resolved. In case of need the traumatologist sends it to a specialized hospital of a surgical profile. In similar medical institutions also primary reception of the traumatologist for injured accidents is carried out.

The traumatologist of a medical hospital and emergency station gives help not only at the isolated damage, but also at multiple injuries which can be followed by blood loss, including internal bleedings, disturbance of consciousness and breath, quickly developing infection (peritonitis, gangrene), a sudden cardiac standstill. Thus, in critical situations the traumatologist performs functions of the emergency doctor.

Modern traumatologists in the work use conservative methods of treatment (imposing of plaster bandages and steak, massage, extension, physiotherapy exercises, physiotherapeutic methods of influence), and also operative measures on bodies of a musculoskeletal system, including and on a backbone.

Children's traumatologist

The children's traumatologist performs the same functions, as usual, but taking into account anatomic and physiological features of the growing organism.

At children and teenagers allocate the special types of changes which are followed by sliding or shift of trailer departments of tubular bones in the area of the neogrowing stiff rostkovy cartilage – an epiphysis (epiphysiolysis) and apophyses (apophyseolysis). Involvement of a bone without appropriate treatment can lead to shortening and a curvature of an extremity. Owing to features of a structure of a bone tissue children quite often have subperiostal changes as "bent" or "a willow rod" with disturbance of integrity of a bone at the unimpaired periosteum.

At damage of the copular device at children the children's traumatologist defines a separation of sheaves and tendinous stretchings in a point of their attachment to a bone together with an osteoarticular fragment. At a similar injury at adults only the sheaf is broken off.

According to traumatologists, dislocations of bones as a result of an injury practically do not occur at children that is explained by feature of an anatomic structure of bones and the copular device of a joint.

Diagnosis in traumatology

During consultation the traumatologist can appoint the following types of diagnosis:

• X-ray inspection – a method number one in diagnosis of injuries;
• CT (computer tomography) or MRT (magnetic and resonant tomography) – is applied to specification of the diagnosis at difficult, critical injuries, for example craniocereberal;
• The general clinical blood test – is appointed for identification of disturbances of a homeostasis for the purpose of definition of weight of an injury;
• Biochemical blood analysis on the content of calcium, an alkaline phosphatase, calcitonin;
• Densitometry (determination of density of a bone tissue) – the last two methods of a research are appointed at osteomyelitis and osteoporosis.

According to indications additional researches, and also consultations of adjacent specialists, for example, of the neurosurgeon, the cardiologist, etc. can be appointed.

When it is necessary to go for reception to the traumatologist

Consultation of the traumatologist is necessary in the presence of the following symptoms:

• Restriction of the movement in a joint;
• Increase in the size of a joint or its swelling;
• Pains and crunch during the movement;
• Instability in a joint;
• Change of a form (deformation) of a joint.

According to traumatologists, timely diagnosis and correction of the specified symptoms allow not only to accelerate recovery process, but also prevent development of possible complications.