CBOT: our constant challenge

CBOT: o nosso desafio constante Recently, we had another Brazilian Congress of Orthopedics and Traumatology (CBOT), this time in the city of Rio de Janeiro, with its beauty and joyfulness and the warmhearted competence of its inhabitants. Rio has a great tradition of congresses, starting with the one at the Quitandinha, the first major Brazilian congress, and continuing to today's international congresses for updates on orthopedics and traumatology, which have marked out the era and set the standard. The invitations issued to foreigners, rigorous control over timing, detailed organization and majestic social events have made these orthopedics and traumatology congresses a reference point. Some might say that was another era. This is a comfortable way of avoiding comparison with the brilliant past. What has changed in orthopedics and in its congresses? In my opinion, the subspecialties of orthopedics are the major novelty. They are ever-larger and stronger, and they attract specific sponsors who seek consumers who have already been channeled in a certain direction. This interest in subspecialties translates the present moment in medicine, which has become divided in order to make it easier to comprehend. It is almost impossible for someone to keep up to date and have practical experience within the entire spectrum of orthopedics and traumatology. We all start from the same basic principles and we specialize more and more so that we will be able to perform our professional activities better. The basis continues to be orthopedics and traumatology, which at all times helps us to comprehend the practices of the specialty. Without this basis, we would gradually lose our solid grasp of our specific fields. How would we perform fixation of osteotomies without the principles of osteosynthesis that have become established through traumatology? How would we treat arthrosis without basic knowledge of the physiology and general characteristics of this disease? How would we establish diagnoses of pain in limbs without knowledge of vertebral syndromes? And there are so many other examples. Updating our knowledge is a necessary practice at all levels. Congresses are our main means for keeping up to date and space at congresses is dedicated to novelties and to the concepts defined within medicine, orthopedics and specific areas within this specialty. The most recent CBOTs have had this format and have become a great success in terms of attendance numbers. Addition of value to specialties, by bringing back a one-day period (the so-called …