At Northwest Health, our board-certified physicians and other healthcare professionals provide comprehensive orthopedic services on an inpatient and outpatient basis. We offer a very wide range of services and have a very active orthopedic surgery staff.

Orthopedists treat a wide variety of medical problems. Among the many procedures that Northwest Health’s orthopedists perform are:

• setting broken bones and putting on casts or splints
• treating joint conditions (dislocations, slipped disks, arthritis, and back, shoulder, and neck problems)
• treating bone tumors and birth defects of the skeleton
• treating conditions such as carpal tunnel syndrome and osteoarthritis
• surgically repairing or replacing, hip, knee, elbow, or finger joints

Some orthopedists specialize in the treatment of one or several areas such as the foot, hand, shoulder, spine, hip or knee; others specialize in orthopedic pediatrics, trauma or sports medicine.

Making Appointments with an Orthopedist
You can see an orthopedist either through a self-referral or by referral from another physician. Also, you may receive treatment by an orthopedist if you arrive at a Northwest Health System Emergency Room as a result of an accident or illness.

Diagnosing the Problem
Before any treatment or rehabilitation protocol can be established, it is important that your doctor determine the reason for, and source of, your condition. Generally this means you will have a complete physical examination and you and the physician will discuss your general medical history. In addition, your orthopedist will want to discuss the complete history and description of the symptoms related to your orthopedic difficulties. Be sure to include information about any other illnesses, injuries, or complaints that have been associated with the pain or condition, as well as previous treatments and medicines prescribed. Diagnostic tests may then follow, including blood tests and/or X-rays.

Treatment
After making a diagnosis, your physician may prescribe medication, an exercise program, surgery or a combination of those. For most orthopedic conditions there is more than one form of treatment, which may include the new Surfboard Rehab program at Northwest Rehab in Bentonville.

Orthopedic patients have benefited from technological advances such as joint replacement and the arthroscope that allows the orthopedist to look inside a joint. Surgery is frequently done in a same-day operating room that makes it possible for you to go home within hours of having your surgery.