orthogeriatrics
Pronunciation: or-thoh-jeh-ree-AT-riks
A subspecialty model of care in which geriatricians and orthopaedic surgeons collaborate to manage older patients with musculoskeletal injuries, most commonly hip fractures.
Full Definition
Orthogeriatrics (also spelled orthogeriatrics; not to be confused with 'orthopaedic geriatrics') represents a co-management model in which geriatric medicine expertise is embedded within or closely linked to orthopaedic surgical services to optimise pre- and post-operative care for frail older patients. Core functions include preoperative medical optimisation, peri-operative delirium prevention, early mobilisation, falls risk assessment, and bone protection therapy. In editorial contexts, note that 'orthogeriatric' is the adjectival form (e.g., 'orthogeriatric team') and 'orthogeriatrics' is the noun. The spelling with 'ae' (orthopaedics) applies to the surgical specialty, while orthogeriatrics does not adopt this convention.
Usage
Usage note: One word, no hyphen. Distinguish from 'orthopaedics' (surgical specialty) in all documents. The adjectival form is 'orthogeriatric' (e.g., 'orthogeriatric review').
In Context
- "The orthogeriatrics team reviewed all patients on the trauma ward each morning to identify and address medical barriers to rehabilitation." — Service description in a hospital annual report
- "The introduction of an orthogeriatrics co-management model reduced median length of stay by 2.3 days." — Research article abstract