AO Spine

Issue 25, May 2020

Editorial by Norman Chutkan

Norman Chutkan

Dear Reader

Our lives were turned upside down this spring. Within our homes, our workplaces, and our AO Spine we had to reassess our values and activities and focus on what matters most. I was immensely proud to see the global spine community come together to support each other, how agile we were in opening new channels for sharing, and how we took the lead in assessing the impact of the crisis.

Emiliano Vialle to the core—It's decision time

Emiliano Vialle talks candidly to AO Spine about arriving at a personal crossroads, making tough decisions on priorities, and challenging himself not to soften up, to keeping up the hard work. We first talked during the Carnival; while others were partying, there was a rare window to catch up with the "busiest man in Latin America". And then COVID-19 happened.

AO Spine study assesses impact of COVID-19 on spine surgeons

Spine surgeons have been affected immensely by the COVID-19 pandemic but are often excluded from conversation. The AO Spine's study addressing the overall and geographic impact of COVID-19 on healthcare professionals, focusing on spine surgeons as a model, was published online in Global Spine Journal in record time. It is the first study to evaluate the impact on health care professionals. Follow-up studies at different time points of virus severity will address the virus' long-term effects.

Letters from the land of COVID-19

Snapshots of AO Spine members experiences at the height of the pandemic

The big COVID-19 reboot 2020

The state of the world 2020 brought together the global spine community in an unprecedented way. And not just the spine community: we see all specialties coming together with exceptional agility, level of openness, and a will to help. Results from studies are being shared open access and published at record speed.

Highlights

AO Spine Clinical Expert Advice Forums—Placing focus on situations where an expert opinion crucially matters

AO Spine RECODE-DCM meets global burden of DCM—The top ten research priorities published

Rolling out the new AO Spine Curriculum

Update on the AO Spine Injury Classification Systems—comprehensive and easy to use

A woman in spine—a rarity despite continuing efforts

AO Spine Asia Pacific uniting experts

Germán Ochoa Traveling Fellowship—Mohamed Abdel-Wanis wins over Kenyan Spine Surgeons

What your peers are reading—Current spine literature updates for AO Spine members

GSJ awards top papers and reviewers

The Global Spine Congress: Did you know?

Access your membership privileges here

Editor-in-chief
Norman Chutkan
AO Spine International
Community Development Commission Chairperson

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The articles included in the Newsletter represent the opinion of the individual writer exclusively and not necessarily the opinion of AO Spine.