If you’ve suffered a broken bone (fracture), or have received treatment for a broken bone that didn’t heal properly, you should know that the team of surgeons at the Orthopaedic Trauma Service, part of the University of Michigan Health System, specializes only in fractures and has more than 45 years of trauma-specific experience. We comprehensively treat all forms of fractures, with a variety of cutting edge surgical and non-surgical treatments individualized for your specific needs.
Broken Bones from Accidents and Other Traumas
We are experts at treating fractures due to trauma, including:
- Slip and fall fractures
- Fractures from motor-vehicle accidents
- Fractures from workplace accidents
- Sports-related fractures
We meet many of our patients in the emergency room, providing thorough evaluation and diagnosis. All fractures, with the exception of spine fractures and some hand fractures, are treated by our team. We perform approximately 1,000 fracture surgeries each year and operate six days a week.
To diagnose, we conduct a clinical exam, get your history and take X-rays. Occasionally, we may need to order a CT scan or an MRI. Sometimes a condition only requires non-surgical care. However, if it’s been demonstrated that surgery is necessary to achieve a good result, we will advise it. And, once surgery has been decided, we make every effort to get you on the surgical schedule quickly so you can begin working with physical rehabilitation right away.
We Specialize in Pelvic Fractures and Fractures around Joints
We offer some fracture surgeries that aren’t readily available elsewhere, such as surgery for pelvic fractures. We also treat problem fractures like those that occur around joints, expertly piecing the joint fragments back together. And we are often referred patients with fractures that have failed to heal after initial treatment.
Minimally invasive surgery options allow us to treat some fractures through small incisions so patients can get back to their lives as quickly as possible.
In addition to trauma fractures, we also treat osteoporotic fractures and are part of the American Orthopaedic Association’s Own the Bone program to improve the care of fracture patients age 50 and up. We provide our patients with education and treatment programs, with a goal to restore them to pre-fracture function in weeks to months after injury.
On average it takes about three months to heal after fracture surgery. During that time, our partners in rehabilitation will begin working with you to increase your function, decrease your pain and maximize your performance.
We collaborate with multiple disciplines, including
- Radiology
- Sports Medicine
- Family Medicine
- Pediatrics
- Emergency Medicine
- Rheumatology
- Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation.
This team environment allows us to take advantage of our experts’ knowledge and experience to better care for our patients.