The first steps toward establishing the Department of Orthopedics and Traumatology at Hacettepe University Faculty of Medicine began with the founding of the Hacettepe Children's Hospital, which started operating as an institute and hospital affiliated with Ankara University.
The first Orthopedics and Traumatology specialist to take up duty at the founding of our Department was Dr. Sevim Kömürcüoğlu, appointed in September 1960. Since there was not yet a resident in the Orthopedics department, one of the pediatrics residents assisted her on rotation. In January 1961, Dr. Şükrü Bayındır returned from the USA and started work as the second specialist. (The first orthopedics and traumatology resident was Dr. Talat Göğüş, who came on rotation in July 1961.) The entire Orthopedics Department, as it was then called, consisted of one of the pediatric examination rooms. This place, so narrow that while a pelvipedal cast was being applied no one inside could get out and no one outside could get in, became inadequate for the department in 1962 when Necdet İnal joined as a resident and in 1963 when Dr. Nejat Tokgözoğlu joined the staff as a specialist from the USA. The clinic, whose staff and workload were steadily increasing, moved in 1963 to its present location. It gained its first inpatient ward in Ward 22. With the founding of Hacettepe University in 1963, an independent Orthopedics and Traumatology department was established within Hacettepe Hospital.
In the past, our Department has been headed by Dr. Şükrü Bayındır (1962-1967), Dr. Nejat Tokgözoğlu (1961-1980), Dr. Talat Göğüş (1980-1986 and 1988-1995), Dr. Yaser Muşdal (1986-1988), Dr. Adil Surat (1995-2005), Dr. Mümtaz Alpaslan (2005-2011) and Prof. Dr. Mahmut Nedim Doral (2011-2017). Prof. Dr. A. Mazhar Tokgözoğlu was appointed Head of the Department in September 2017.
The Hacettepe University Faculty of Medicine and its Orthopedics and Traumatology clinic took the lead in starting a nationwide vaccination campaign against the acute polio disease that broke out in those years. The first treatment of polio scoliosis with a Harrington Rod was carried out in 1963. Our Department has been a pioneer in the country in the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of developmental dislocation of the hip (DDH), scoliosis treatment, total hip and knee arthroplasty, and musculoskeletal oncology. The Salter osteotomy for DDH treatment in 1961, scoliosis surgery in 1962 and total hip arthroplasty in 1970 were performed for the first time in our clinic. In addition, our Department has led in medicine in our country and in the world by achieving many firsts in areas such as the growing scoliosis rod, external fixation, bone lengthening operations, closure of bladder exstrophy, total hip arthroplasty in patients with high hip dislocation, and hip and knee prosthesis revision surgery. The best indicator of its success in this pioneering mission has been the publications in SCI-indexed journals, international book chapters and presentations at international congresses. Our Department's faculty members also contribute to the development of existing orthopedic implants and the creation of new implants through work that will be good examples of university-industry cooperation. Phase 3 and Phase 4 studies are also conducted with the pharmaceutical industry.
The Department of Orthopedics and Traumatology of Hacettepe University Faculty of Medicine, which has earned a respected place in Turkish orthopedics, has trained faculty members for many universities and training centers, has led the establishment of Orthopedics and Traumatology departments at many universities, and has always been at the forefront of scientific meetings, national congresses and professional organizations in its field.
The Hand Surgery Division under our Department is one of the rare institutions in our country that trains specialists in hand surgery.
Last updated: 24 October 2017