Pregnancy and the orthopaedic patient

Pregnancy presents unique challenges to both the Orthopaedic surgeon, and the patient. Uniquely there exists not one, but two patients necessitating consideration in each decision process. Physiological changes serve to contribute to the presentation of a number of orthopaedic conditions unique to pregnancy, as well as impacting upon the management of trauma involving the pregnant patient. While elective orthopaedic procedures can generally be postponed until after delivery, trauma usually demands more urgent intervention. A planned and reasoned approach to managing such trauma scenarios is beneficial. In this review article we firstly discuss some of the physiological changes in pregnancy that make the patient susceptible to orthopaedic disease or injury. Secondly, we look at the management of orthopaedic trauma in the pregnant patient. An overview of some of the orthopaedic conditions encountered during pregnancy is presented.