About the Department of Orthopedics, Traumatology, Spinal Surgery and Foot Surgery at Hospital zum Heiligen Geist Frankfurt am Main
The Department of Orthopedics, Traumatology, Spinal Surgery and Foot Surgery at the Hospital zum Heiligen Geist Frankfurt am Main offers the full range of modern diagnostic tests and therapeutic methods, including surgical ones, for the treatment of musculoskeletal diseases and injuries. The key interest for the department's team of doctors is knee, hip and shoulder replacement surgery, arthroscopic joint interventions, conservative and surgical treatment of spinal diseases, medical care for foot diseases and deformities, as well as the treatment of musculoskeletal injuries, including complex injuries in elderly patients. The department has been awarded the EndoCert quality certificate and is a major Endoprosthetics Center, which performs both standard and complex joint replacement surgeries. The experienced team of the department's doctors and junior medical staff sets itself the task of providing patients with effective and as safe treatment as possible. At the same time, it is important for the specialists that the patient receive individualized medical care of the European level. The department is headed by Dr. med. Thomas Forer.
The department has a certified Endoprosthesis Center, which has performed over 10,000 joint replacement surgeries since 1965. The department is one of the pioneers in the field of artificial hip joint implantation. It also performs knee and shoulder joint replacement surgery. Thanks to long experience and wide technical capabilities, the department's specialists achieve excellent therapeutic results. The quality of medical services provided by the Endoprosthetics Center is regularly inspected by independent authorities. The center is a member of the German Arthroplasty Registry (EPRD), which ensures exceptional treatment safety. Thanks to the registry, the department's specialists are able to accurately determine the cause of the previous joint replacement surgery, as well as obtain information about the surgical technique used and the characteristics of the prosthesis. Such an approach allows them to timely perform revision interventions to replace worn prostheses and, if necessary, prescribe conservative treatment to reduce the risk of complications. In their work, the department's specialists use only advanced implants from leading manufacturers that have passed quality certification and have confirmed their durability and reliability.
The department also specializes in the prevention, diagnostics and treatment of congenital and acquired functional disorders of the musculoskeletal system. The patients with pathologies of bone structures, joints, muscles and tendons are most often admitted to the department. The orthopedists of the medical facility have rich experience and are rightly proud of their outstanding results in the field of arthroscopic knee and shoulder surgery, surgical treatment of degenerative diseases of large joints and spine, as well as surgical repair of forefoot deformities. The department also provides effective conservative treatment of musculoskeletal pathologies using infiltrations, injections, manual therapy and other techniques.
In the field of traumatology, the department often admits patients who require emergency medical care for injuries. If necessary, the long-term consequences of traumatic musculoskeletal injuries can also be treated. The patients are admitted both on an inpatient and outpatient basis.
A special focus of the department's specialists is on the surgical treatment of spinal pathologies. The medical facility regularly admits patients with spinal stenosis and osteoporotic compression fractures. In case of spinal stenosis, conservative and surgical treatment or combined treatment can be conducted. Conservative treatment includes physiotherapy and therapeutic exercises. Surgery for spinal stenosis is performed using minimally invasive techniques, which guarantees the patient a quick recovery after the intervention and minimal pain. Conservative and surgical techniques are also used to treat osteoporotic compression fractures. In the first case, the department's doctors administer injections with painkillers to the patient, and if there are indications for surgery, they resort to balloon kyphoplasty. In addition, the department's orthopedists specialize in facet joint blocks for the treatment of back pain.
The department performs various arthroscopic interventions on the joints. Arthroscopy involves the introduction of miniature surgical instruments and a video camera through small punctures, which makes it possible to transmit an image of the surgical field on a large screen. Arthroscopic procedures carry a lower risk of postoperative complications, severe pain, and infections. Particular attention of the department's specialists is focused on the diagnostics and treatment of pathologies of the knee and shoulder joints, namely, meniscus tears, cruciate ligament injuries, shoulder instability, rotator cuff tears, impingement syndrome, tendinitis, etc.
The competence of the department's medical team also includes the treatment of foot diseases and deformities. Of particular interest is the repair of hallux valgus and hallux rigidus. At the early stages of pathologies, the doctors resort to conservative therapeutic measures: wearing special orthopedic insoles and comfortable shoes, physiotherapy, massage, shock wave therapy. If these techniques do not give a satisfactory result, the patient undergoes a low-traumatic corrective surgery.
The department's clinical focuses include:
- Orthopedics
- Knee, hip and shoulder joint replacement surgery
- Arthroscopic interventions on the knee and shoulder joints
- Traumatology
- Conservative and surgical treatment of musculoskeletal injuries of any severity, including in elderly patients
- Surgical treatment of spinal pathologies
- Conservative and surgical treatment of spinal stenosis
- Conservative and surgical treatment of osteoporotic compression fractures
- Facet joint block for back pain
- Foot surgery
- Conservative and surgical treatment of Hallux valgus
- Conservative and surgical treatment of Hallux rigidus
- Other medical services
Curriculum vitae
University Education and Professional Career
- Since 2017 Head Physician, Department of Orthopedics, Traumatology, Spinal Surgery and Foot Surgery at the Hospital zum Heiligen Geist Frankfurt am Main.
- 2010 - 2016 Managing Senior Physician, Department of Orthopedics, Traumatology, Spinal Surgery and Foot Surgery at the Hospital zum Heiligen Geist Frankfurt am Main.
- 2003 - 2010 Senior Physician, Department of Orthopedics, Traumatology and Hand Surgery at the Hospital Darmstadt.
- 1994 - 2003 Assistant Physician, advanced training in the Department of Surgery at the Hospital Nordwest.
- 1992 - 1994 Assistant Physician, Department of Neurosurgery at the University Hospital Frankfurt am Main.
- 1986 - 1992 Study of Human Medicine at the Johann Wolfgang Goethe University.
Clinical Interests
- Hip and knee replacement surgery.
- Spinal surgery.
- Hand surgery.
Memberships in Professional Societies
- Working Group on Endoprosthetics (AE) of the German Society for Orthopedics and Trauma Surgery (DGOU).
Photo of the doctor: (c) Hospital zum Heiligen Geist