Comparative orthopaedic research.

http://dx.doi.org/10.3415/VCOT-14-04-0060 A fundamental aim of the Veterinary and Comparative Orthopaedics and Traumatology journal is to provide an interdisciplinary platform for orthopaedists and traumatologists in human and veterinary medicine. This is based on the premise that comparative studies of musculoskeletal diseases and injuries are important to the discovery of something new, be it anticipated, different or unexpected, that will be of ultimate benefit to one or more other species of animals. This approach has been applied to studies of musculoskeletal diseases in animals ranging in size from mice to horses, contributing immeasurably to our knowledge about major clinical problems such as fracture healing, stress fractures, cruciate ligament rupture, osteoarthritis, articular cartilage defects, large bone defects and intervertebral disc degeneration. Orthopaedic research is often most successful with a multi-disciplinary approach involving clinicians, biologists, engineers and veterinarians, especially for research involving animals. In many countries around the world, most new orthopaedic research findings are often first presented at orthopaedic research meetings. By far the largest of these meetings is that of the Orthopaedic Research Society (ORS) in the USA. The ORS recently celebrated its 60th anniversary at its annual meeting in New Orleans. As you will read following this Editorial, two prominent veterinarians, Dr. Wayne McIlwraith and Dr. Steven Arnoczky, were honoured with awards from the ORS in New Orleans in March 2014. We warmly congratulate them both on having achieved this recognition.