Common Misconceptions about Orthopedics

Mark Wood
2 min readDec 14, 2020

Medicine itself is full of unfounded myths and legends. We are used to believe information without checking it, just following the public opinions. Some medical myths are imprinted in our brains so much that we take them as axioms. But it is very wrong. Nowadays there are tons of medically proved and checked information in the open sources. We will make your life easier a bit and debunk common legends about and in orthopedics.

Orthopedics and orthodontics is not the same thing.

The names are indeed similar, however these are two completely different areas.

Orthodontics is a branch of dentistry that deals with correction and prevention of tooth misalignment and malocclusion. The goal of modern orthodontics is dental and facial aesthetics, functional and correct positioning of jaws, etc.

Orthopedics, as you might have already guessed, is not about teeth at all. It is a medical specialty that studies diseases and traumas of the bones and muscles. The musculoskeletal system is of a high complexity and consists of ligaments, bones, joints, tendons, nerves and muscles. It provides us with ability to move and to lead an active lifestyle.

Young people don’t require orthopedic services.

Orthopedists treat patients of any age, from newborns with feet deformities, athletes who require arthroscopic surgery to elderly patients with joint arthritis. And let’s not forget bone fractures that can happen at any age. The other conditions that are treated by orthopedists are:

  • osteochondrosis;
  • congenital diseases;
  • feet abnormalities;
  • arthritis;
  • arthrosis and bursitis.

Carpel tunnel is caused by overuse of computer, and tennis elbow comes from playing tennis.

While in some cases it is true, most of the time these conditions are caused by other more complex factors. For instance, carpel tunnel can occur because of age, diabetes, wrist injuries, bone spurs, thyroid gland dysfunction or hormonal changes.

And tennis elbow syndrome is diagnosed not only in case of athletic activities. Any repetitive monotonous movements that overstrain a certain muscle group of the arm can cause this disease. Thus, regular people are more prone to suffer from tennis elbow (or medically called epicondylitis). https://touchofhealthmedical.com/orthopedics/treatment-of-elbow-pain gives more details about this syndrome.

There are many more misconceptions but it will take more than one article to prove them wrong. On the website of the clinic Touch of Health in Orlando you can find precise and specific medical information about various conditions and treatments.

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