THE CURRENT POSITION OF DIAGNOSTIC ULTRAS OUND IN ORTHOPEDICS - RESULTS OF A NATIONWIDE SURVEY

The purpose of this study was to determine the current position of dia gnostic ultrasound imaging in the day to day orthopaedic practice. a q uestionaire was sent to all the 387 conservative and operative orthopa edic hospitals and orthopaedic university departments in Germany. 167 of these hospitals completed the forms and provided the basis for this evaluation (response rate 43,2%). Screening of the fetal hip for CDH was by far the most common indication, the shoulder was ranking second , the knee and the hip joint in children and adults rank third and fou rth. Other frequent indications were injuries of the achilles tendon, the menisci of the knee, the knee in rheumatoid arthritis and muscle i njuries. Ultrasound imaging is clearly established as a diagnostic too l at least in the named areas. It is therefore of importance to includ e ultrasound examination techniques in the curriculum of the orthopaed ic training scheme.