'Tech feast' awaits orthopedics experts

Annual surgeons conference will be important event for Memphis companies

The Commercial Appeal
March 4, 2008
By Daniel Connolly

The biggest event in the Memphis orthopedics scene this week isn't in Memphis: It's in San Francisco, where thousands of doctors from throughout the United States and other countries are expected for the annual conference of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons.

Part trade show, part medical conference, the event gives doctors a chance to learn the latest techniques in orthopedics, the study of diseases and injuries to the muscular and skeletal systems.

Companies will set up elaborate displays where physicians can play with surgical tools. Hundreds of lectures and research posters will be presented, and business leaders will angle for deals.

The number of expected attendees wasn't available Monday. But the scope of the event can be overwhelming, said Chris Przybyszewski, director of grants and communications at the InMotion Musculoskeletal Institute, an independent orthopedics research laboratory in Memphis.

"Typically everybody in orthopedics, if they can go, they go to this thing," said Przybyszewski. He and three other InMotion employees will be there.

InMotion researcher Ruxandra Marinescu will present her team's study on knee pain related to the implantation of metal rods to stabilize broken bones.

Medical device firms with big Memphis operations, including Medtronic, Smith & Nephew and Wright Medical, plan to present their best face to doctors, who are key customers in the industry.

"It allows us to launch products, it allows us a chance to show off our products," said Smith & Nephew spokesman Victor Rocha.

The firm plans to announce the launch of several new devices during the week, he said.

Medtronic isn't announcing new products, but plans an extensive display of its surgical products, said spokesman Bert Kelly, who like Rocha was on his way to the meeting Monday.

Four or five doctors from Orthomemphis PC are attending, said Dr. Randall L. Holcomb, president of the physicians' group.

The conference allows in-person meetings that would otherwise be impossible to fit into surgeons' busy schedules, he said. He plans to see dozens of colleagues to discuss research projects.

He described the event as immense, and said it offers unending opportunities to learn.

"It's a technical feast for those who want to go and look at and handle new equipment, new technologies, learn new techniques," he said.

-- Daniel Connolly: 529-5296

American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons annual conference

Time: The Orthopedic Research Society, a subgroup of AAOS, has its meeting Sunday through today. The main meeting runs Wednesday to Sunday.

Place: Three buildings in the Moscone Center in San Francisco.

Events: Huge numbers of exhibits, lectures, meetings and poster presentations.

Web site: aaos.org