Project Summary / Abstract
The American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS) Musculoskeletal Infection: Where
Are We In 2014? Research Symposium will provide the musculoskeletal community with
evidence-based state of the art knowledge to improve the diagnosis and treatment of
musculoskeletal infections, including orthopaedic periprosthetic and post-traumatic/post-surgical
infections. The symposium will provide a unique opportunity for collaboration among a
multidisciplinary group of orthopaedic surgeons, medical and infectious disease physicians,
pathologists, endocrinologists, epidemiologists, health economists and basic science
investigators to discuss current research on musculoskeletal surgical site infections as it relates
to the musculoskeletal clinicians. Additionally, the symposium will encourage a new generation
of musculoskeletal clinician scientists and basic science researchers to collaborate in order to
find novel ways to positively impact musculoskeletal surgical site infections by reducing the
incidence of these events and improving outcomes once they occur.
The specific aims are (1) to assemble and provide a collaborative forum for a multidisciplinary
group of clinicians and scientists with a common interest in musculoskeletal infection; (2) to
discuss and differentiate the various forms of musculoskeletal infection in terms of microbiology,
cellular biology, and pharmacology; (3) to examine and report the "state of the art" for
diagnosing and treating orthopaedic periprosthetic and post-surgical infections; (4) to evaluate
and recommend treatment strategies for post-traumatic / post-injury orthopaedic infections; (5)
to compare and contrast the disparities that are observed between patient groups in both the
development as well as the treatment of musculoskeletal infection; (6) to incorporate evidence
based practice guidelines into the diagnosis and treatment of musculoskeletal infections; (7) to
report, discuss, and develop consensus statements for the diagnosis and treatment of specialty-
specific orthopaedic infections. The outcomes and clinical recommendations from the MI
symposium will be disseminated through an article(s) in an orthopaedic journal.