Orthopaedic Trauma

Zhongshan Hospital Affiliated to Xiamen University—Department of Traumatology and Orthopaedics I. Basic Profile, Qualifications and Honors The Department of Traumatology and Orthopaedics of Zhongshan Hospital Affiliated to Xiamen University is a National Key Clinical Specialty (construction project) and a Fujian Provincial Key Clinical Specialty. It received a nomination for the Orthopaedics Specialty in East China in the Fudan China Hospital Specialty Reputation Ranking. It is the only National Key Clinical Specialty construction project in southwestern Fujian, a first-batch member of the Fujian Alliance for Rapid Treatment of Elderly Hip Fractures, a member of the Fujian Orthopaedic Alliance, the Xiamen Orthopaedics Professional Quality Control Center, and a pilot unit for enhanced recovery after surgery in orthopaedics designated by the National Health Commission. The department has achieved notable results in clinical care, teaching and research, continuously serving as a regional model and managing quality in orthopaedics to protect the public’s musculoskeletal health. In 2005, the orthopaedics department of the hospital became an independent department; in 2011, the traumatology and orthopaedics subspecialty was established. It currently has 46 beds and is equipped with internationally advanced imported medical instruments, surgical instruments and diagnostic and treatment equipment. Its staffing structure is well balanced and its technical strength is strong. After years of development, building on the legacy of predecessors including Lin Shengzhou, Chen Guoneng and Ma Jun, and under the leadership of current academic director Director Lin Zhenzong, the department has continued to advance subspecialty development and diagnostic and treatment capabilities. It performs all traumatology and orthopaedics procedures, including pelvic and acetabular fracture surgery, widely recognized as the “Mount Everest” of orthopaedic surgery. In 2022, traumatology and orthopaedics joined the hospital’s other orthopaedic subspecialties and was approved as a “Fujian Provincial Key Specialty Construction Project”; in 2024 it was approved as a “National Key Clinical Specialty Construction Project,” and in the same year was selected as the Xiamen Orthopaedics Quality Control Center. It has provided important support for the development of orthopaedics in Xiamen and demonstrated leading strength throughout Fujian and nationally. II. Core Diagnostic and Treatment Scope The department has comprehensive diagnostic and treatment technology and integrated rescue capabilities covering severe multiple trauma, combined injuries, and common and difficult orthopaedic diseases. It adheres to minimally invasive and enhanced-recovery concepts and provides trauma patients with timely, standardized and efficient care. Core services include: 1. Surgical treatment of all types of pelvic and acetabular fractures; 2. Surgical treatment of limb fractures, especially severe periarticular fractures, injuries to tendons and ligaments at all sites, and all types of joint replacement; 3. Systematic diagnosis and treatment of nonunion and bone infection; 4. Limb-lengthening surgery and limb-salvage treatment related to diabetic foot; 5. Exploration, neurolysis and anastomotic repair of peripheral nerve injuries; 6. Corrective treatment of all types of foot and ankle trauma and deformity; 7. Surgical treatment of spinal diseases including lumbar disc herniation, spinal canal stenosis, spinal deformity and spinal fractures. III. Distinctive Subspecialties and Core Technical Advantages The department has reached a leading domestic level in treating severe multiple and combined trauma. It has developed distinctive strengths in elderly hip fractures, spinal fractures, minimally invasive surgery for limb fractures and foot-and-ankle surgery. (I) Comprehensive treatment of severe trauma A standardized treatment pathway has been established for severe multiple and combined trauma. The department can maturely perform pelvic fracture surgery through multiple approaches, including the ilioinguinal approach, K-L approach, Stoppa approach, pararectus approach, lumbopelvic triangular fixation, sacroiliac screw fixation and pelvic INFIX fixation. It has extensive experience treating severe periarticular limb fractures, including plateau fractures, severe elbow fractures, pilon fractures and proximal humeral fractures. It performs hemi-shoulder and reverse shoulder arthroplasty, elbow arthroplasty, hip and knee arthroplasty and other joint replacements, as well as routine repair of tendon and ligament injuries at all sites, exploration, neurolysis and anastomotic repair of peripheral nerve injuries, standardized treatment of nonunion and bone infection, and limb-lengthening surgery. (II) Rapid treatment of osteoporotic fractures in older adults The department was the first in Xiamen to establish a green channel for elderly osteoporotic fractures (hip fractures and vertebroplasty), providing rapid treatment, effectively shortening treatment time and improving outcomes. It is a first-batch member of the Fujian Alliance for Rapid Treatment of Elderly Hip Fractures, and its treatment capability has a regional demonstration effect. (III) Limb-salvage treatment for diabetic foot It was among the earliest units in Fujian to perform transverse bone transport limb-salvage surgery for diabetic foot. Its limb-salvage rate is high, providing effective limb-preservation plans and reducing amputation risk. (IV) Foot-and-ankle surgery Routine treatment includes all types of foot-and-ankle trauma and corrective surgery for deformities, including correction of hallux valgus, clubfoot, flatfoot and cavus foot, resolving various foot-and-ankle pain and functional disorders. (V) Minimally invasive diagnosis and treatment of spinal diseases Standardized surgery is performed for spinal fractures, lumbar disc herniation, spinal canal stenosis, spinal deformity and other spinal diseases. Minimally invasive principles are followed to reduce surgical trauma and accelerate postoperative recovery. IV. Multidisciplinary MDT Integrated Diagnosis, Treatment and Full-Course Management Relying on national, provincial and municipal key-specialty platforms, the department collaborates with other orthopaedic subspecialties, general surgery, neurosurgery, thoracic surgery, urology, radiology, pathology, geriatrics, anesthesiology, infectious diseases and precision medicine. It has established multidisciplinary cooperation and provides one-stop integrated plans for multiple and combined trauma, complex bone tumors, severe bone and joint infections, osteoporosis and other conditions. Following enhanced-recovery principles, it optimizes the entire care process, from preoperative assessment and individualized surgical planning to postoperative rehabilitation guidance. It works with rehabilitation and pain medicine to establish dedicated sports-injury and postoperative rehabilitation and pain-management teams, equipped rehabilitation wards and facilities, and a complete postoperative follow-up system. One-to-one outpatient and inpatient rehabilitation guidance is provided to reduce postoperative and exercise-related pain as much as possible, improve the care experience and support optimal functional recovery. A green channel for elderly osteoporotic fracture care provides rapid triage, assessment and surgery and effectively shortens preoperative waiting. Supporting rehabilitation services, guidance and postoperative follow-up provide full-course care and improve postoperative function and prognosis. The department has 45 open beds, 35,000 outpatient visits annually, 1,600 discharges and 1,200 operations per year. V. Talent Team and Expert Strength The department has 29 medical and nursing staff, including 2 chief physicians, 4 associate chief physicians and 1 attending physician; 5 doctors and 4 master’s graduates; and 1 provincial/municipal high-level or outstanding talent. The talent structure is well balanced. Academic director Director Lin Zhenzong participated in drafting national diagnostic and treatment guidelines and expert consensuses for various orthopaedic diseases. He is a member of the Traffic Injury and Trauma Data Committee of the Trauma Branch of the Chinese Medical Association, an editorial-board member of Chinese Journal of Traumatology (English Edition), a specially invited editorial-board member of Chinese Journal of Traumatology, deputy chair of the Tissue Repair and Regeneration Branch of the Fujian Medical Association, a standing committee member of its Trauma Branch, chair of the Trauma Medicine Branch of the Xiamen Association of Integrated Chinese and Western Medicine, and a standing committee member of the Orthopaedics Branch of the Xiamen Medical Doctors Association, the Orthopaedics Branch of the Xiamen Medical Association and the Orthopaedics Branch of the Xiamen Association of Integrated Chinese and Western Medicine. In Xiamen, he has led or participated in 5 provincial- or municipal-level research projects. VI. Coordinated Development of Medical Care, Education and Research (I) Medical services Relying on the National Key Clinical Specialty (construction project) and Fujian Provincial Key Clinical Specialty platforms, and serving as the Xiamen Orthopaedics Professional Quality Control Center, the department continuously standardizes regional orthopaedic care standards. It has integrated rescue capabilities for severe multiple and combined trauma and common and difficult orthopaedic diseases, routinely performs high-difficulty traumatology and orthopaedics surgery, and provides high-quality, efficient care based on minimally invasive and enhanced-recovery concepts. (II) Teaching and training As a clinical teaching base for Fujian Medical University, Xiamen University and Xiamen Medical College, the department undertakes extensive teaching for standardized-training residents and has a complete talent-training system. It trains visiting and standardized-training physicians and hosts/co-hosts multiple national, provincial and municipal continuing-education programs. (III) Research and innovation The department has long pursued research on difficult clinical problems in traumatology and orthopaedics. In the past 2 years it obtained 5 provincial- and municipal-level projects, published multiple SCI and core-journal papers, and obtained multiple utility-model patents. VII. Summary of Core Departmental Advantages 1. Complete high-level qualification platforms: The department holds dual key-specialty qualifications as a National Key Clinical Specialty (construction project) and a Fujian Provincial Key Clinical Specialty; it is the Xiamen Orthopaedics Professional Quality Control Center and a National Health Commission pilot hospital for enhanced recovery after surgery in orthopaedics. It is also a first-batch member of provincial orthopaedic alliances and has regional demonstration and quality-leadership capabilities. 2. Outstanding distinctive technical advantages: Treatment of severe multiple and combined trauma is at a leading domestic level; the department was among the earliest in Fujian to perform transverse bone transport limb-salvage surgery for diabetic foot and has a high limb-salvage rate; it was the first in Xiamen to establish a green channel for elderly osteoporotic fractures, shortening treatment time and improving prognosis; and its routine surgery for all types of orthopaedic trauma is mature and covers the full spectrum of needs. 3. Comprehensive subspecialty coverage: Services cover severe multiple-trauma care, elderly hip fractures, minimally invasive treatment of spinal and limb fractures, foot-and-ankle surgery, nonunion and bone infection, limb lengthening, peripheral nerve injury and spinal diseases, meeting the needs of all traumatology and orthopaedics patients. 4. Well-structured talent team: Senior professional titles account for 75% of physicians, while doctoral and master’s degrees account for more than 66%, forming a highly educated, highly qualified and well-tiered technical team. 5. Solid foundation for coordinated medical care, education and research: The department is a clinical teaching base for three higher medical institutions, undertakes standardized-training personnel development, and has research achievements including provincial and municipal projects, academic papers and utility-model patents, forming a virtuous model in which clinical care, teaching and research promote one another. 6. Complete full-process service system: It adheres to minimally invasive and enhanced-recovery concepts, establishes multidisciplinary cooperation for complex conditions, operates a green channel for elderly osteoporotic fractures, connects emergency care, surgery, rehabilitation and follow-up, and provides standardized, efficient full-course care. VIII. Department Vision The department will continue to rely on the National Key Clinical Specialty (construction project) and Fujian Provincial Key Clinical Specialty platforms, remain patient-centered, deepen minimally invasive and enhanced-recovery traumatology and orthopaedics, continuously improve comprehensive treatment of severe trauma and difficult diseases, perfect full-course patient services, strengthen talent development and research innovation, and continue serving as a regional orthopaedic quality-control and academic model. It will provide higher-quality, efficient and standardized traumatology and orthopaedics care for people in southwestern Fujian and broader regions and contribute to regional musculoskeletal health.