Communication is the best medicine. Older patients should discuss concerns with their Orthopaedic Surgeons.

When discussing surgery with their orthopaedic surgeons, older patients frequently do not raise all of their concerns about proposed procedures. A study published in the July 2008 issue of The Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery found that patients age 60 or older have many concerns and questions that they do not mention to their orthopaedic surgeons, which, in turn can become a barrier to obtaining optimal care.

Using audiotapes of visits between patients and their orthopaedic surgeons, as well as post-visit telephone interviews, researchers found:

-Patients raised only 53% of their concerns about surgery during office visits.
-Patients rarely raised concerns about their ability to meet the demands of surgery or about the orthopaedic surgeon's communication and surgical experience.
-Patients did receive answers about the timing of surgery and about the care facility where the procedure would be performed.

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