On 25-26 June 2021, the Third Eurasian Orthopaedic Forum was held in Moscow. Approximately 2,000 civil and military medical professionals from the CIS, Asia-Pacific, South Asia, Middle East and Europe attended the forum, while others watched the presentations online.
The EOF-2021 featured sessions of specialised international trauma and orthopaedic societies, an exhibition of medical devices and equipment manufacturers, workshops for trauma and orthopaedic surgeons, and signing of important cooperation agreements.
The two-day event attracted some 2,000 participants, even with all the COVID-19 restrictions. More than 4,000 people watched the Forum online. This hybrid format ensured that even those speakers who were prevented from travelling to Moscow for EOF-2021 due to the anti-pandemic measures, took part in the Forum, making sure the academic and business agenda is unaffected by the restrictions. Over 400 hours of unique recorded video content is available to all forum participants on the event’s official website https://2021.eoforum.ru/.
The EOF 2021 scientific programme was timed to honour the 100th anniversary of the Priorov Central Scientific Research Institute of Traumatology and Orthopaedics and the 100th anniversary of the birth of GA Ilizarov to mark their outstanding role in the development of trauma and orthopaedic scientific school in the Eurasia.
The Forum’s scientific programme spanned 15 sections, including specialised ones dedicated to surgical treatment of the hand, foot, shoulder, large joint arthroplasty, and broader sections covering general trends in arthroscopy, traumatology, and orthopaedics. The Forum also hosted meetings of international specialist societies: East European Sarcoma Group, AO Spine and AO Trauma, A.S.A.M.I., Russian-Japanese Conference on Spine Surgery. A teleconference with representatives of EPOS, German Knee Society and Gruppo San Donato, Italy, was held.
Particular attention was paid to practical skills and the use of materials and tools. Day Zero, 24 June, was dedicated to orthopaedic traumatologists, who could test their practical surgery skills on postmortem materials. It was hosted by the forum partners Arthrex School and Johnson & Johnson.
The business agenda sections discussed the interaction between domestic and foreign manufacturers of orthopaedics and trauma products, the creation of a medical materials register, and the balance of rights and responsibilities between doctors and patients.
“Interest in the project is increasing every time, and the project itself is evolving. The EOF is not just a conference; it is a multifaceted project bringing together, firstly, a variety of countries and scientific schools, and secondly, the industry of trauma and orthopaedic care. The industry is not only a clinic where surgeries are performed or a factory where prosthetics and instruments are made; it is not just a University that trains doctors; all these elements work together towards the common goal of helping patients to move without pain”, summarised Leonid Brizhan, the Executive Secretary of the EOF Organising Committee, Doctor of Medical Sciences, Head of the NN Burdenko Trauma and Orthopaedics Centre.
Industry symposia on materials, tools, prost