April 26-29, 2009
Cartagena, Colombia
Click here to download a pdf of the Final Program and Abstracts book.
 The WFH Musculoskeletal Congress, held April 26 to 29 in Cartagena, Colombia, attracted a record number of participants this year. A UNESCO World Heritage Site, Cartagena is often said to be a magical place. Indeed, there were many magical qualities to Musculoskeletal Congress 2009. The ancient historic setting, the new medical developments described, and the outstanding attendance — over 290 participants from a growing number of disciplines — a number that exceeded our goals and expectations.
The distinguished international speakers and excellent representation of disciplines (orthopedics, physiatry, physiotherapy, and hematology, among others) resulted in a highly enriching and educational experience.
A Pre-Congress Day featured concurrent sessions on orthopedics and rehabilitation. The orthopedics session focused on constructing collective working strategies, through the development of guidelines, registries, and a collective research project. The rehabilitation session focused on training and education initiatives, including the development of treatment guidelines and organizing future non-surgical training workshops. These pre-congress meetings were followed by the congress opening ceremony and welcome reception.
On the first day of the congress, there were two free paper sessions, on general regional issues and non-surgical issues. Of particular note, Sébastien Lobet of Belgium presented his paper, “Impact of Hemophilic Ankle Arthropathy on Gait Disability: Analysis of Energetic and Mechanical Variables,” for which he was awarded the Henri Horoszowski Prize. His study examined the effects of joint disease on function and mobility and highlighted the importance of physiotherapy as part of multidisciplinary, comprehensive care for people with hemophilia. Other sessions covered wound site hemostatic complements and exercise programs and sports in hemophilia.
 The second day featured a very detailed session on repetitive psoas bleeds, secondary knee damage, and pelvic pseudotumours. Other topics that day centred on anesthesia, post-operative pain management, and nerve blocks in surgery. The free papers presented covered factor treatment, synovectomy, and surgical and invasive procedures. The final day began with a session on acute and chronic sequelae related to hemophilia and closed with a summary of the continuing challenges and future directions.
At the Musculoskeletal annual general meeting that followed, the Pietrogrande Award was presented to Dr. Jerome Weidel of the Mountain States Hemophilia Center in Denver, Colorado, for his outstanding work in orthopedic surgery for more than 35 years. Dr. Weidel was one of the first orthopedists to perform total joint replacements and arthroscopic procedures in patients with hemophilia. His work with the international hemophilia community dates back to his vital role in organizing one of the first international musculoskeletal conferences in the mid-eighties. Members at the annual general meeting then selected the city that will host the 12th Musculoskeletal Congress in 2011 — Cairo, Egypt.
“The MSK Congress was a tremendous success,” said Mark Skinner, WFH president. “We were impressed with the increased number of participants this year and the quality of the scientific work.”
After the annual general meeting, many went on to attend the national meeting of the Colombian Society of Orthopedics and Traumatology, a symposium aimed at general orthopedic surgeons that attracts about 1,500 attendees from across Colombia and neighbouring countries. The plenary session was titled “Everything you wanted to know about hemophilia and were afraid to ask.”
We are grateful to all the speakers and participants for attending the 2009 Musculoskeletal Congress. Your participation is crucial to the WFH Musculoskeletal Committee’s continuing work to expand and strengthen our international network and the knowledge on musculoskeletal care for people with hemophilia. The ultimate goal is always to improve the lives of our patients and provide the best level of care that we can. We welcome any and all who are interested in musculoskeletal issues to attend the next Musculoskeletal Congress, and be part of the magic that we hope to continue in Cairo, Egypt, in 2011.
Angela Forsyth
Junior Vice-chair
WFH Musculoskeletal Committee
Adolfo Llinás, MD
Chair
WFH Musculoskeletal Committee
Hemophilia World, August 2009
Attendance Statistics
Orthopedic
Local Orthopedic
Industry
Physiotherapist
Other AHP
Local AHP
Staff & WFH Executive
Total |
69
90
30
42
35
22
6
294 |
Demographics
The 294 Participants in the 11th Musculoskeletal Congress came from 47 countries. The 10 most represented countries were as follows:
Colombia
United States
United Kingdom
Mexico
Argentina
Canada
Brazil
Italy
Venezuela
Germany |
115
20
13
14
12
12
11
9
8
7 |
The World Federation of Hemophilia would like to thank the following companies for their significant contribution:
Gold Sponsorship:
Silver Sponsorships:
MSK 2009 was organized by:
In collaboration with
Musculoskeletal Committee
Past Musculoskeletal Congresses
Who we are
Musculoskeletal Executive Committee
Terms of Reference
Musculoskeletal Committee Awards
Musculoskeletal Membership
Musculoskeletal Committee - Publications (1995-2003)
Last Updated September 2009 |
