Joseph P. Johnson, M.D., assistant professor in the Trauma Section of the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, was an author of a recently published article titled “Pelvic Ring Injuries: Stable or Not?”

The study, published in the Journal of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, "provides a comprehensive review of radiographic markers suggestive of stability, discusses treatment strategies, and proposes a treatment algorithm that is easily understood and applicable to not only those with a trauma background but also the general orthopaedic surgeon who will see these injuries frequently while on call."

According to the study, pelvic ring injuries vary in both patient demographics and severity, and the injuries occur in a variety of ways – from a simple ground-level fall to car crashes or work-related heavy machinery accidents.

“Pelvic ring injuries remain one of the most studied but least understood injury patterns in orthopedic trauma,” says Johnson. “They encompass a massive spectrum of disease from minor to life threatening.”

While there is current knowledge surrounding pelvic ring injuries, the understanding of when these injuries do or do not need surgery is still evolving.

“In this review, we hoped to delineate clear parameters for on call physicians as to what needs intervention in the operating room, and what can be safely treated nonoperatively,” says Johnson.

Learn more about this study, here.