Orthopedic surgery deals with problems of the spine and the extremities. An orthopedic surgeon diagnoses and treats patients whose musculoskeletal problems include arthritis, trauma and congenital deformities. He or she also works with patients who have traumatic and overuse injuries. Using both surgical and non-surgical means, the orthopedic surgeon will treat injuries and degenerative problems of the spine and extremities, such as hands, feet, knees, shoulders and elbows.

Physicians in this specialty treat patients suffering from numerous diseases and illnesses, but some of the most common are spinal infection, spinal discectomy, spinal injury, spondylolisthesis, spinal stenosis, herniated disc, carpal tunnel syndrome, scoliosis, spinal deformity, spinal cord tumors, arthritis, trigger finger, tennis elbow, wrist fractures, ganglion cysts, orthopaedic trauma, brachial plexus injuries, and congenital deformities.

Once properly diagnosed, practitioners can perform numerous procedures on patients including disc disease / surgery, hand surgery, hip replacement, back / spine surgery , invasive disc surgery, joint surgery, kyphosis surgery, shoulder arthroscopy and débridement, repair of ankle fracture (bimalleolar type), repair fracture of radius (bone)/ulna, knee replacement, laminectomy, total joint reconstruction (arthroplasty), spine surgery, foot and ankle surgery, lumbar spinal fusion, carpal tunnel release, repair of femoral shaft fracture, repair of rotator cuff tendon, and repair of ankle fracture (fibula).

To diagnose patients with possible illnesses and diseases, specialists will often perform one of many tests including cat scan, mri arthrogram, magnetic resonance imaging (mri), computed axial tomography (ct or cat scan), x-ray, pet scan, bone scans, hip ultrasound, gallium scan, medical photography, and spine ultrasound.

Doctor density varies by specialty and location. Connecticut has 413 practicing orthopedic surgeons. Broken out by city, orthopedic surgery doctor density in Ansonia is 7, in Avon is 25, in Bethel is 1, in Bethlehem is 1, in Bloomfield is 10, in Branford is 22, in Bridgeport is 20, in Bristol is 8, in Brookfield is 15, in Canton is 4, in Cheshire is 7, in Colchester is 4, in Cos Cob is 1, in Cromwell is 5, in Danbury is 19, in Danielson is 4, in Darien is 10, in Deep River is 4, in Derby is 2, in East Granby is 1, in East Hartford is 9, in Easton is 1, in Enfield is 16, in Essex is 5, in Fairfield is 24, in Farmington is 31, in Gales Ferry is 2, in Glastonbury is 34, in Greenwich is 11, in Groton is 9, in Guilford is 21, in Hamden is 31, in Hartford is 48, in Hebron is 2, in Litchfield is 1, in Madison is 6, in Manchester is 11, in Mansfield Center is 4, in Marlborough is 2, in Meriden is 7, in Middlebury is 5, in Middletown is 14, in Milford is 35, in Monroe is 1, in Mystic is 2, in N Franklin is 7, in Naugatuck is 2, in New Britain is 13, in New Canaan is 2, in New Haven is 42, in New London is 12, in New Milford is 14, in Newington is 2, in Newtown is 6, in North Franklin is 1, in North Haven is 2, in Norwalk is 16, in Norwich is 8, in Old Greenwich is 3, in Old Saybrook is 5, in Orange is 13, in Plantsville is 1, in Putnam is 7, in Ridgefield is 12, in Rocky Hill is 4, in Sharon is 3, in Shelton is 26, in Sherman is 1, in Simsbury is 4, in South Windsor is 11, in Southbury is 10, in Southington is 9, in Stafford is 1, in Stafford Springs is 4, in Stamford is 20, in Stratford is 19, in Tolland is 4, in Torrington is 9, in Trumbull is 10, in Vernon is 3, in Vernon Rockville is 7, in Wallingford is 17, in Waterbury is 17, in Waterford is 3, in Weatogue is 2, in West Hartford is 11, in Westbrook is 2, in Westport is 11, in Wethersfield is 2, in Willimantic is 8, and in Windsor is 14.

This New England state is one of the original 13 states; Connecticut’s capital is Hartford and its population is 3,510,297. This state is steeped in history. Visit the past at the Nathan Hale Homestead near New London, or Yale University in New Haven. Tour the home of Mark Twain, the New England Air Museum, or the Maritime Aquarium in Norwalk. Explore a historic tobacco farming area, do some hiking and biking, or visit the numerous antique shops or lighthouses in the eastern coastal area.

According to 2005 Census estimates, Connecticut has a population of 3,510,297. Of this population, 812,182 are under the age of 18 and 472,089 are at or above the age of 65.