Patient guide
Plain-language articles on the orthopaedic problems we see most often: when watching is safe, when treatment is needed and how it works. Every article lists its sources.
Shoulder and elbow
- Bursitis: what is it, what causes it? Elbow bursitis, symptoms and treatmentWhat is bursitis and what causes it? Symptoms of elbow, knee, shoulder and hip bursitis and what helps: ice, draining, injection, antibiotics and surgery.
- Broken collarbone (clavicle fracture): sling or surgery?Pain and a bump over the collarbone after a blow to the shoulder or a fall: symptoms, treatment in a sling, when surgery is needed and how long healing takes.
- Frozen shoulder: how long does it last, and when are injections or surgery considered?Shoulder stiff in every direction and painful at night: the stages of frozen shoulder, cortisone injection, exercise, hydrodilatation and where surgery fits.
- Shoulder pain and rotator cuff problems: is surgery needed?Shoulder pain that worsens when lifting the arm or at night: the difference between impingement and a rotator cuff tear, and how exercise, injections and surgery fit in.
- Calcific tendinitis of the shoulder: why it happens and how it is treatedCalcium deposits in the shoulder tendons (calcific tendinitis): how it differs from arthritis, symptoms, natural course, injections, shock waves and surgery.
- Dislocated shoulder: what happens after it is put back, and is surgery needed?First aid for a dislocated shoulder, putting it back in hospital, sling and physiotherapy; the risk of it coming out again and when surgery is discussed after a first dislocation.
- Shoulder pain: what causes it, what helps and who to seeWhat causes shoulder pain and what helps at home? Pain down the arm, night pain, left shoulder pain, which specialty to see and when not to wait.
- Tendinitis (tendon inflammation): what causes it and what helps it settle?What is tendinitis (tendonitis), what are the symptoms and causes? What helps: gels and painkillers, exercise, steroid injection, shock waves, PRP; how long?
- Tennis elbow: what do steroid injections, PRP and surgery add?Pain on the outer side of the elbow is common even in people who never play tennis: the place of rest, a strap, exercise, steroid and PRP injections and surgery, and how long it lasts.
Hand and wrist
- Carpal tunnel syndrome: when does hand numbness need surgery?Numbness and tingling that wake you at night: how to choose between a splint, an injection and surgery for carpal tunnel, and when the hand can be used afterwards.
- Thumb-side wrist pain: De Quervain's tenosynovitisA common cause of pain on the thumb side of the wrist: De Quervain's tenosynovitis, with splinting, steroid injection, surgery and the post-childbirth period.
- Broken wrist: cast or surgery?How treatment is chosen after a fall onto the wrist: cast time, when surgery is needed, the role of age and what recovery looks like.
- Ganglion cyst: when does a lump on the wrist need treatment?A soft lump on the wrist or finger: does a ganglion cyst go away, does draining it work, and when is surgery worth considering?
- Numbness and tingling in the hand and fingers: causes, what helps, who to seeWhy do your hand and fingers go numb or tingle? Numbness at night, a numb little finger, carpal tunnel, what helps, which doctor to see and when it is urgent.
- Cut tendons and nerves in the hand: when is it urgent?Cuts to the palm, fingers or back of the hand can damage tendons and nerves: which signs need same-day assessment, how repair is done and why hand therapy matters.
- Trigger finger: injection or surgery?A finger that catches, clicks or locks: how to choose between a splint, a steroid injection and surgery for trigger finger, and what recovery looks like.
Hip
- Hip fracture in older adults: how soon should surgery be done?Groin pain and inability to walk after a fall: why a broken hip needs surgery, how soon to operate, the types of operation and what recovery involves.
- Hip osteoarthritis: exercise, medicines, injections and replacement, what and when?Hip osteoarthritis symptoms and treatment: groin pain, exercise, weight, medicines, steroid and hyaluronic acid injections, and when hip replacement is needed.
- Hip pain: what causes it, what helps and which doctor should you see?What causes hip pain, where does it spread and how can it be eased at home? Causes of groin, outer hip and buttock pain, who to see and when it is urgent.
- Recovering from a hip replacement: the first weeks and returning to daily lifeAfter hip replacement: length of hospital stay, precautions in the first 6 to 8 weeks, driving, work, sport and symptoms that need attention.
- Hip replacement surgery: who is it for and what is recovery like?Who is hip replacement surgery for and how do you prepare? The operation, hospital stay, physiotherapy, risks, how long an implant lasts and recovery.
Knee
- Anterior cruciate ligament tear: is surgery always needed?A pop and a feeling that the knee gives way: how to decide between exercise-based treatment and ACL reconstruction, and when sport can restart after surgery.
- Baker's cyst: what causes a swelling behind the knee and how does it settle?What is a Baker's cyst, what causes it and how does it settle? Swelling behind the knee, symptoms, diagnosis, treatment, draining, surgery and a burst cyst.
- Cartilage damage in the knee: does cartilage heal, and how is it treated?What is knee cartilage damage and what are its symptoms? Does cartilage grow back, what helps? Cartilage supplements, microfracture, cartilage grafts, recovery.
- Knee injections: what do cortisone, hyaluronic acid, PRP and stem cells do?Knee injections: cortisone, hyaluronic acid, PRP and stem cells. How well they work, side effects, how often, their place in end-stage arthritis, guidelines.
- Knee osteoarthritis: exercise, weight, injections and replacement, what and when?What is the basis of treating knee arthritis? What guidelines say about exercise, weight control, cortisone and hyaluronic acid injections, arthroscopy and knee replacement.
- Knee pain: what causes it, what helps and who should you see?What causes knee pain and what helps? Kneecap pain in young people, swelling and clicking, home care, knee braces and creams, and which specialty to see.
- Knee replacement surgery: who is it for and what is recovery like?Who is knee replacement surgery for and how do you prepare? The operation, hospital stay, physiotherapy, risks, how long an implant lasts and recovery.
- Meniscus tear: exercise or arthroscopy?Catching and pain in the knee: traumatic and degenerative meniscus tears, the limits of MRI, physiotherapy compared with arthroscopy, and recovery after surgery.
- Kneecap pain and chondromalacia patella: what causes it and how does it settle?What causes pain around the kneecap and what helps? Chondromalacia patella on an MRI report and its grades, exercises, braces, taping, injections and surgery.
Foot and ankle
- Achilles tendon rupture: surgery or a boot?A sudden pop and pain behind the heel: how an Achilles rupture is recognised, how surgical and non-surgical treatment are chosen, and how long recovery takes.
- Ankle sprain: when is an X-ray needed?How do you tell a sprain from a fracture after rolling your ankle? The Ottawa rules, treatment with early movement and exercise, recovery time and the rare cases that need surgery.
- Bunion (hallux valgus): when is surgery needed?A bony bump at the base of the big toe: shoe choice, pads and insoles, pain relief and when surgery is worth considering.
- Flat feet: do children outgrow them, and when are insoles or surgery needed?What are flat feet, what causes them and how can you tell? When children's arches form, whether insoles and shoes help, exercises and when surgery is needed.
- Foot pain: what causes it, what helps and which specialist to see?What causes foot pain and how does it settle? Causes of pain in the sole, heel, top of the foot and big toe, what helps at home and which doctor to see.
- Broken foot and broken toe: symptoms and how long healing takesHow do you recognise a broken foot or broken toe, and how long does it take to heal? Strapping a toe, time in a cast or boot, metatarsal fractures and surgery.
- Ingrown toenail: what causes it, how does it heal, and when is a procedure needed?What causes an ingrown toenail and what helps at home? Nail cutting, creams, nail braces, which doctor to see, what the procedure involves and healing time.
- Heel spurs and plantar fasciitis: what causes heel pain and how does it settle?What causes heel pain and heel spurs (plantar fasciitis)? First-step pain in the morning, stretching, insoles, injections, shock-wave therapy and surgery.
Fractures and trauma
- Ankle fracture: cast or surgery, and when can you put weight on it?How is a broken ankle told apart from a sprain? Choosing between a cast or boot and surgery, when to bear weight, recovery time and decisions in older age.
- Broken bone healing time: when does the cast come off, what eases the itch?How long does a fracture take to heal and when does the cast come off? What slows healing, cast care, itching, a wet cast, swelling in a cast and warning signs.
- Plates and screws after a fracture: do they have to be removed?Plates, screws and nails after a broken bone: what they are made of, whether and when they are removed, how long removal surgery takes, risks and recovery.
- Muscle strains and tears: how to recognise one and how long it takes to healWhat is a pulled or torn muscle? Symptoms by grade, first aid, which creams help, how long recovery takes, and when a scan or surgery is needed.
- Osteoporosis (bone thinning): how is it detected and how are fractures prevented?What is osteoporosis, what causes it and what are the symptoms? Bone density scan, foods that help, medicines, fractures and which doctor to see.
- Stress fracture: what are the symptoms and how does it heal?What is a stress fracture and what causes it? Symptoms in the foot, heel, shin and hip, diagnosis by X-ray and MRI, treatment and how long healing takes.
Children’s orthopaedics
- Forearm fractures in children: cast or operation?A child falls and the arm hurts and swells: types of fracture, casts and manipulation, when surgery is needed, healing time and the growth plate.
- Developmental dysplasia of the hip in babies: why early detection mattersA shallow hip socket in a baby: risk factors, checks at birth and afterwards, the Pavlik harness and when surgery is needed.
- In-toeing in children: what causes it and at what age does it correct?What is in-toeing (pigeon toe) in children, what causes it and when does it correct? Do special shoes, insoles or exercises help, and when is surgery needed?
Bone and soft tissue tumours
- Bone tumours: which symptoms need assessment?Bone pain or a lump: benign and malignant bone tumours, which symptoms to act on, and how diagnosis and treatment are planned.
- Lipoma (fatty lump): what is it, is it dangerous, how is it removed?What is a lipoma (fatty lump), why does it form and is it dangerous? Do creams work, which lumps need a scan, how is it removed and how long is recovery?
- A lump on the arm, leg or trunk: when should it be assessed?A hard, painless lump under the skin that does not move: the symptoms of soft tissue sarcoma, which lumps need assessment and what happens next.