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He's known around the Mississippi sports world as simply "the knee doctor."

But on an international level, Dr. Walter R. Shelton, a staff physician at the Mississippi Sports Medicine and Orthopaedic Center, is known for his diligent work bettering the environment for arthroscopic surgeons.

Shelton recently took over as president of Arthroscopy Association of North America (AANA), a 25-year-old organization that was formed in response to a growing need for information and research on the technique that is now involved in approximately one-third of all orthopaedic procedures. It exists to "promote, encourage, support, and foster ... the development and dissemination of knowledge ... of arthroscopic surgery in order to improve upon the diagnosis and treatment of diseases and injuries of the musculo-skeletal system."

A native of Charleston, Miss., Shelton graduated from Mississippi State University and earned an MD degree in 1974 from the University of Mississippi School of Medicine. His professional training in orthopaedic surgery includes a one-year general surgery internship at Baylor University Medical Center in Dallas. He completed his orthopaedic surgery residency in 1976 at the University of Mississippi Medical Center and in 1980 at the Campbell Clinic in Memphis. He completed a fellowship in sports medicine and knee surgery through the Berg-Sloat Post Graduate Fellowship Program. Board-certified in the specialty of orthopaedic surgery, his specialty is knee surgery.

AANA, the primary source of continuing medical education for practicing arthroscopists and the most respected conduit for new techniques and information concerning the subspecialty, provides hands-on motor skills learning opportunities at the Orthopaedic Learning Center, scientific papers presented at the association's annual meeting, and a combination of motor skills training and cognitive skills training offered at the annual AANA fall course. The association's guidelines virtually define the practice of arthroscopic surgery.

Among AANA's goals:

· To provide healthcare education opportunities for increasing cognitive and psycho-motor skills in arthroscopic surgery.

· To provide CME programs for the AANA membership as well as other qualified professionals.

· To measure the effectiveness of these programs by means of participant evaluation, faculty evaluation and delayed participant follow-up evaluation in an effort to measure practice impact of the material presented.

· To use the data retrieved in the evaluation process as an aid in the development of future CME curricula.

· To develop and use the most effective and accessible teaching techniques available including electronic media.

Mississippi Medical News caught up with the busy doctor, and asked him about his new role.



Mississippi Medical News: You were recently named president of the AANA. How did this come about?

Walter Shelton: I assumed the presidency of the AANA this year after serving for 10 years on the board of directors. I served as treasurer and secretary, and was elected by vote of the membership at the annual meeting this past year.



What are some of the key issues you will be focusing on during your term, and in what order of priority?

The key issues that I will be focusing on during my term is continuing to improve our education of arthroscopic techniques to surgeons, to increase the member benefits of the AANA, and to continue focus on insuring the financial stability and strength of the organization.



How did you get involved with orthopaedics as a specialty, especially knee surgery?

I became involved in orthopaedics as a specialty after having had knee surgery in high school. I did my orthopaedic training under the surgeon in Memphis who actually did my surgery while I was in high school.



What are some of the toughest issues facing orthopaedics these days?

The toughest issues facing orthopaedics today are one, declining reimbursement in the face of rising expenses; two, insuring that adequate trauma care is available to the public; and three, the need for significant medical liability tort reform.



Could you touch on trends and new developments in orthopaedics?

New developments in orthopaedics continue to be minimally invasive surgery and computer and image navigated surgical procedures. This will allow us to do surgery in a much more precise manner than we have been able to do it in the past.

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