Female surgeons have increased rates of infertility and pregnancy complications compared to the general population. This review summarises the available evidence as it relates to specific occupational hazards that face health workers in an orthopaedic operating theatre. This information, while targeted at orthopaedic health workers, is also relevant to anaesthetists, radiographers, nursing staff, medical device company representatives and female surgeons in other specialties.

Unnecessary care, where the potential for harm exceeds the potential for benefit, is widespread in medical care including orthopaedic surgery. Solutions include increasing awareness of the problem, aligning financial incentives with high value care and away from low value care, and demanding low bias evidence where none exists.

Titanium is commonly used as a pure metal or as part of an alloy for a range of medical implants. In orthopaedic surgery, this includes trauma and joint replacement components. This article explores immune-mediated reactions to titanium and the evidence-based underpinning its claim as a hypoallergenic option.

An invisible knife to add to your toolkit; a narrative review of surgical podcasts as audible cutting education.

Bone and joint infections (BJI) caused by non-tuberculous mycobacteria (NTM) are rare and there is a paucity of evidence on which to base management decisions. In this series of seven cases of NTM BJI, complications related to antimicrobial therapy were common, however, all patients were infection free at their latest follow up. The results of this paper suggest that routinely ordering mycobacterial culture is of low yield and there is potential for shorter-term oral antimicrobial treatments.

This study sought to identify differences in care and outcomes for Māori with hip fracture in New Zealand. Māori ethnicity was an independent risk factor for time to theatre >48 h. Time to theatre >48 h was associated with reduced survival.

This study investigated wrist joint degeneration after curettage and PMMA treatment for giant cell bone tumours (GCBT) at the distal radius. Ten of 23 patients developed wrist joint degeneration over an average follow-up period of 8 years, and no particular factors associated with the degeneration were identified.

Through retrospective radiographic analysis of CT data using 645 vertebrae from 129 normal trauma CT scans, we find individuals of Maori and Polynesian descent to have narrower cervical spine canals than their New Zealand European counterparts. This has implication regarding the definition of congenital stenosis and may predispose these ethnic groups to spinal cord pathology.

This study investigated the management of splenic injuries in patients who sustained major trauma in Aotearoa New Zealand. It found a difference in the management of splenic injuries between tertiary and non-tertiary major trauma hospitals; predominantly due to a higher rate of operative management in patients with severe injuries at non-tertiary major trauma hospitals.

A clinical observation algorithm is a safe approach for managing haemodynamically stable anterior abdominal stab wound patients in an Australian setting with adequate resources. This method is shown to reduce non-therapeutic operations and laparotomies with acceptable outcomes.

This paper presents a case series of lithium-ion battery-related burns presenting to the Professor Stuart Pegg Adult Burns Centre at the Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital. Additionally, we provide a retrospective data analysis of emergency department presentations for lithium-ion battery-related burns or blast injuries collated by the Queensland Injury Surveillance Unit. The study describes the rise in severe burns resulting from lithium-ion battery explosions and highlights a need for primary prevention through design, technological, and behavioural strategies to mitigate these injuries.

This is an article about paediatric duodenal hematoma, which suggests that conservative treatment for traumatic duodenal hematoma is effective, with most cases recovering within 4 weeks after injury.

The introduction of e-scooters for shared micromobility represents a new cause of trauma related presentations to regional hospitals. The results from our study will raise awareness regarding the impact of electric scooter injuries in rural and regional areas.

This study evaluates the role of professional achievements in CV scoring criteria for medical and surgical specialty training programs in Australia and New Zealand. The study explores variations, predictive validity, standardization, and potential biases. Findings reveal significant challenges in standardization and implicit biases affecting diversity and career advancement.

Surgical bootcamps provide hands-on learning opportunities for junior doctors and trainees in low-pressure, non-clinical environments. In the first urology bootcamp in Australia, we aimed to assess participants’ knowledge, technical skills, and confidence in managing urological conditions pre- and post-bootcamp. The bootcamp improved self-perceptions of knowledge, confidence, and technical skill and the bootcamp was useful or very useful to all early-career medical officers in furthering their urological training.

Over 10 months surgical registrars in Taranaki, Aotearoa New Zealand held 26 wānanga as a way to learn and practice cultural safety. The wānanga facilitated unity, cultural safety and a new era of surgical training among registrars.

The aim of this study was to determine Pacific Island health workers' experiences, perspectives and access to simulation-based education. Fifty-six clinicians working in 11 Pacific Island countries reported experience with scenario-based simulation (73%), mannequins (71%), and simulated patients (61%). Interest in further simulation-based education was reported by most participants (96%).

The educational context significantly impacts the effectiveness of simulation-based education. This study reveals the complexity of factors affecting the uptake and success of simulation-based education in the Pacific Islands.

This 271-patient study investigates the financial impact of sarcopenia in colorectal cancer surgery patients from a single Australian institution. Sarcopenia was assessed using psoas area measurements, which were determined from preoperative computed tomography scans. Sarcopenia was not predictive of an increase in total hospital cost (AU$37 712 vs. $34 845, P = 0.296).

Pelvic exenteration is cancer involves a radical multi-visceral resection to improve complete surgical clearance, and access is limited within Queensland. Over a 14-year period, 176 patients were referred through the service, increasingly from regional areas, the majority of whom were recommended for surgery. Geographical remoteness was not associated with overall survival, but patients from outer regional areas were more likely to decline, implying a gap in logistical support for these patients to access oncological care.

Haemorrhoids are a common condition that general surgeons manage. We compare the efficacy of Doppler-guided HAL-RAR versus non-Doppler-guided HAL-RAR.

This is the first study to describe MPC in colorectal cancer in an Australian population. This study found that MPC is associated with high risk features in colorectal cancer in South Western Sydney area during a 6 year period. This is an emerging subgroup of colorectal cancer that is found to be more aggressive with high risk features and poor outcome, and its identification may have the potential to guide management/ for a better outcome.

We report two cases of total gastrectomy and Roux-en-Y reconstruction that required future endoscopic surveillance of the duodenum. As such, an additional proximal duodenojejunostomy was fashioned to facilitate endoscopic surveillance.