(Togo First) - Lomé is hosting the 19th Congress of the French-speaking Orthopaedic Association (AOLF) through Friday, June 26. The event is being held alongside the 7th Congress of the Togolese Society of Orthopaedic Surgery and Traumatology (SOTOCOT).
Held under the theme, "Africa Facing the Challenge of Traumatology," the international event has brought together more than 400 physicians, researchers and students from Europe, sub-Saharan Africa and the Maghreb. It is the third edition of the congress to be organized in sub-Saharan Africa.
Over three days, participants are discussing scientific advances and innovations in orthopaedic and trauma surgery. The sessions were opened by Dr. Djifa Gameli, chief of staff at the Ministry of Higher Education and Research, representing the Togolese authorities.
The program includes about 30 scientific sessions featuring oral presentations, educational lectures, practical workshops, roundtable discussions and presentations on new therapeutic approaches. Discussions focus in particular on road traffic trauma, ballistic fractures, spinal injuries, joint prostheses, surgery for patients with sickle cell disease and the use of bamboo as a teaching aid for surgical simulation.
Several workshops are dedicated to operative techniques, including spinal arthrodesis, a surgical procedure that permanently fuses two or more vertebrae. Roundtable discussions are also addressing the challenges posed by traditional medicine in fracture management, funding emergency care following road traffic accidents and strengthening the training of healthcare professionals.
According to the organizers, the congress is intended to promote the dissemination of knowledge, the sharing of experience and the development of collaboration among French-speaking specialists, at a time when trauma resulting from road traffic accidents continues to pose a major challenge for African healthcare systems.
Ayi Renaud Dossavi