History
This course was conceived in 1983 and developed over the following four years. It is modeled after the one week Orthopaedic Pathology Courses designed by the late Dr. Lent Johnson, and further developed by the late Dr. Don Sweet of the Armed Forces Institute of Pathology. By linking topics related to the principles of treatment of orthopaedic conditions to the core pathology lectures, the course seeks to provide a potential framework on which the orthopaedic surgeon can base his/her conceptual models. While the powerful tools of genetics and cellular biology are adding new concepts in terms of mechanisms of disease, the fundamental nature of the pathophysiology of disease, as reflected at the cellular level, does not change.
This course seeks to develop a solid foundation based on linking clinical, pathological and radiological information for the categories of disease. Lectures on principles of treatment of disease entities are included. While the modes of treatment technology undergo constant change and refinement, the principles on which this treatment are based, seldom change.
The continued evolution of the COA Basic Science Course has allowed it to become a Canadian standard, attended annually by residents from all training programs. To this date more than one thousand participants have undertaken this educational experience.
