Greetings

Hiroshi Minagawa M.D., Ph.D.

Dear Colleagues,

I am glad to announce "The 27th Annual Meeting of the Japanese Society of Orthopedic Ultrasonics" is taking place in Akita Castle Hotel (Akita Prefecture) for two days, on 4th (Sat) and 5th (Sun) July 2015. This society was established as a study group in 1989, and was renamed to be an academic meeting in 2013. Thanks to histories of endeavors and enthusiasms of contributed seniors, it will be our 27th annual meeting this year.

Improvements of ultrasound imaging device, especially its spacial resolution and time resolution which became better than CT / MRI, and easy handling feature which requires less time and manpower than X-ray, we know what the orthopedic medicine's future direction is like. Soon or later, ultrasound imaging will become more and more popular so that it becomes your first choice, substituting X-ray. Moreover, an issue of increasing medical expense is likely to be a key trend to accelerate contribution of ultrasound diagnosis and treatment, promoting our value of existence as a society.

In Japanese, the word 'academic study' is represented by two words; meaning 'to learn', and another meaning 'to question'. Based on the knowledge of anatomy and orthopedics, you are 'learning'. By investigating such information, you are 'questioning' to judge if they are clinically meaningful or not. We, as medical professionals, ‘academic study' is a place where we can contribute to clinical treatment, research and education. But is it only so?

Understanding the etymology of 'academic study' from a classic Chinese literature, , its true meaning is;

Therefore, I would say, annual meetings of academic societies, should not only be the places where you just sit and study. Annual meetings, are the places where we discuss and realize where and how you are positioned. The true objective for us, is to work for patients and contribute to the world.

Now, what does over 100 years of footsteps of orthopedics tell us? We are standing at the divergence point of the era. The theme for this annual meeting is " -Paradigm Shift of Orthopedics Diagnosis and Treatment-".

Hiroshi Minagawa M.D., Ph.D. President, the 27th Annual Meeting of the Japanese Society of Orthopedic Ultrasonics Director, Joto Orthopedics