This book describes the 60-year history of the AO Foundation and its impact on the treatment of bone trauma. Originally founded by a group of Swiss surgeons, the AO has since established its osteosynthesis treatment approach to trauma, using surgery and implants, as the global standard. The AO successfully convinced the medical community that surgery of bone trauma was superior to the standard conservative treatment using plaster casts. This new technique meant that patients no longer had to spend long weeks at the hospital in traction, and prevented many disabilities. This book describes the struggle with the medical community, explains how the AO surgeons enlisted the support of an entire industry for their advanced tools and their research and teaching efforts, and details the AO’s evolution into a non-profit foundation that now trains more than 50,000 surgeons, on all continents, every year. The efforts of the AO’s affiliated surgeons, undertaken largely on a volunteer basis and with their own financial resources, serve as a stellar example of social entrepreneurship. Today the AO Foundation numbers over 20,000 surgeon members worldwide, and the industry that emerged to produce related implants and tools employs thousands of skilled staff. Professionals in consulting as well as in healthcare can use this book as a source of successful strategies, and as a blueprint for active social entrepreneurship.

Many surgical revolutions distinguish the history and evolution of surgery. Some are small, others more dominant, but each revolution improves the art and science of surgery. Surgical revolutionaries are indispensable in the conception and completion of any surgical revolution, initiating scientific and technological advances that propel surgical practice forward. Surgical revolutionaries can come in the guises of Lister (antisepsis), Halsted (surgical residency and safe surgery), Cushing (safe brain surgery), Wangensteen (gastrointestinal physiological surgery), Blalock (relief of cyanotic heart disease), Lillehei (open heart surgery), and many others. With the hindsight of history, we can recognize patterns of progress, evaluate means of advancing new ideas, and solidify details of innovative behavior that could lead to new surgical revolutions. This volume examines the following vital questions in detail: What is a surgical revolution and how do we recognize one? Are surgical revolutionaries different? Is there a way to educate new surgical revolutionaries? Can history provide enduring examples of surgical revolutions? Are there different kinds of surgical revolutions? What characterizes a surgical revolution in the context of science and technology? What surgical revolutions are on the horizon?

Written by a surgeon with 40 years' experience in practice and instruction, this book provides vital, up-to-date information that explains the strengths and weaknesses of the laparoscopic surgery field to enable potential surgical patients to make the best decisions and choose a surgeon wisely. More than 30 years ago, laparoscopic or "keyhole" surgery suddenly appeared as an operative technique. Laparoscopy quickly grew in the U.S. surgical field, where now more than two million operations annually use the technique. But is the training surgeons receive in laparoscopy sufficient to ensure patient safety? What are the specific situations where laparoscopy is beneficial and justified, and when is it ill-advised due to the additional complexity and risk factors? This is the first book written for general readers—avoiding medical jargon wherever possible—to expose the gritty history and downsides of "minimally invasive surgery." Additionally, it provides the perspective and insights of an esteemed surgeon who was working at the inception of laparoscopy and has a full understanding of this now widely popular procedure across its development and lifespan. Readers will learn about the emergence of laparoscopic techniques in the 1990s, understand how minimally invasive surgery has been a boon to the business of surgery and to patient health and recovery overall, appreciate how the complexity involved in laparoscopic surgery has led to a higher incidence of surgeon "incompetence," and grasp the responsibility of a patient to take steps to assure that the surgeon is qualified before going into the operating room. Examination of eye-opening statistics on the outcomes of laparoscopic procedures documents the high level of capability of most surgeons, as well as the lack of appropriate ability with certain laparoscopic operations in the hands of some surgeons. The author also spells out how informed patients can be prepared to discuss and consider all aspects of an operation—and the surgeon's training and experience—to assure the best outcome for their health.

This book describes the 60-year history of the AO Foundation and its impact on the treatment of bone trauma. Originally founded by a group of Swiss surgeons, the AO has since established its osteosynthesis treatment approach to trauma, using surgery and implants, as the global standard. The AO successfully convinced the medical community that surgery of bone trauma was superior to the standard conservative treatment using plaster casts. This new technique meant that patients no longer had to spend long weeks at the hospital in traction, and prevented many disabilities. This book describes the struggle with the medical community, explains how the AO surgeons enlisted the support of an entire industry for their advanced tools and their research and teaching efforts, and details the AO's evolution into a non-profit foundation that now trains more than 50,000 surgeons, on all continents, every year. The efforts of the AO's affiliated surgeons, undertaken largely on a volunteer basis and with their own financial resources, serve as a stellar example of social entrepreneurship. Today the AO Foundation numbers over 20,000 surgeon members worldwide, and the industry that emerged to produce related implants and tools employs thousands of skilled staff. Professionals in consulting as well as in healthcare can use this book as a source of successful strategies, and as a blueprint for active social entrepreneurship. The AO journey through 60 years tells the amazing success of a group of determined Swiss surgeons which developed solutions to overcome traditional techniques of fracture repair that meant splinting or traction over a period of many hundred years. A must read for any orthopedic surgeon. Univ. Prof. Dr. med. Florian Gebhard, Director Department for Orthopedic Trauma, Vice Dean Medical Faculty, Ulm University, Germany Professor Jeannet's chronicle of the development of the AO Foundation's game-changing innovation in the medical treatment of musculoskeletal trauma is inspiring and insightful. It illuminates a potential path forward to transformation of the global healthcare industry through the application of principles and practices of creativity, innovation and entrepreneurship. Professor Mark Rice, Provost and Professor of Entrepreneurship, Babson College, USA Jean-Pierre Jeannet has written an important book on an important organization. AO's story is a remarkable case of entrepreneurship-with-a-purpose, as well as an inspiring illustration of how a few determined individuals can end up positively impacting the lives of millions! Jean-François Manzoni, President IMD, Lausanne, Switzerland The History of the AO Foundation is also a story of how the Canton of Solothurn turned into a Medtech hotspot with its unique concentration of leading orthopedic implant firms. This book is a testimony to the innovative impact of this sector on the Swiss economy at large. Roger Graber, Economic Development Canton of Solothurn, Solothurn, Switzerland.

This book brings together a wealth of international case studies to examine transformational entrepreneurship and its multifaceted applications across different sectors, including the arts, business, engineering, government, healthcare, and nonprofits. Contributors illustrate how this distinct form of entrepreneurship can adapt to unpredictable changes, balancing social and economic impact to promote stability and growth.

Living Organ Donor Transplantation, Second Edition puts the entire discipline in perspective while guiding readers step-by-step through the most common organ transplant surgeries. Organized into four cohesive parts and featuring numerous surgical illustrations, this sourcebook delivers an incisive look at every key consideration for general surgeons who perform transplantations, from patient selection to recipient workup and outcomes, and emphasizes the most humanitarian approaches. Sections provide content on living donor uterus transplantation, new operative techniques, including the use of robotic and minimally invasive transplant procedures, new immunosuppressive regimens, new protocols of tolerance induction including stem cell therapy and transplantation, and much more.Chapter authors are international leaders in their fields and represent institutions from four continents (Americas: USA, Argentina, Brazil, Canada; Europe: France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Sweden, UK; Asia: China, Japan, Korea, Taiwan; Australia). - Provides an A-Z, operation-oriented guide to the field of living donor organ transplantation - Examines a wide spectrum of solid organ transplantation procedures (liver, pancreas, kidney, intestine), with accompanying chapters on the history of the procedure, the donor, the recipient, and cost analysis - Covers techniques that explain adequate pretransplant workup and posttransplant care - Covers cultural differences, ethical and legal issues, social issues, current financial incentives, and the illegal organ trade

This handbook covers the technical, social and cultural history of surgery. It reflects the state of the art and suggests directions for future research. It discusses what is different and specific about the history of surgery - a manual activity with a direct impact on the patient’s body. The individual entries in the handbook function as starting points for anyone who wants to obtain up-to-date information about an area in the history of surgery for purposes of research or for general orientation. Written by 26 experts from 6 countries, the chapters discuss the essential topics of the field (such as anaesthesia, wound infection, instruments, specialization), specific domains areas (for example, cancer surgery, transplants, animals, war), but also innovative themes (women, popular culture, nursing, clinical trials) and make connections to other areas of historical research (such as the history of emotions, art, architecture, colonial history). Chapters 16 and 18 of this book are available open access under a CC BY 4.0 license at link.springer.com