INTO – Instituto Nacional de Traumatologia e Ortopedia

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

The National Institute of Traumatology and Orthopaedics, an agency of the Ministry of Health linked to the Secretariat of Health Care, specialises in surgical care in the area of Orthopaedics and Traumatology.

The INTO focuses on surgical care and does not provide emergency services. Those patients referred by other health units are screened and evaluated by experts to define the surgical indication. Where conservative treatment is indicated, the patient is advised to seek another health unit. Patients who require elective surgery are placed on a
waiting list organised according to the disease or procedure required. The waiting list is available on the Internet.

Established in 1994 by the Ministry of Health when orthopaedic procedures in the country were normalised, the National Institute of Orthopaedics and Traumatology serves patients in the Unified Health Care System (SUS) exclusively and stands out as a centre of excellence in the treatment of moderately and highly complex orthopaedic diseases and traumas.

The Hand Surgery Clinic at the INTO offers services covering the whole spectrum of hand surgery.
Specific areas of surgical and clinical expertise include:

• All acute trauma to the hand, wrist and forearm, including all microsurgical procedures, ranging from replantation to free tissue transfer
• Nerve injuries to the upper extremities
• All types of fractures of the hand, wrist and forearm
• Post-traumatic correction and reconstruction of fractures and nerve injuries
• Upper limb lengthening
• All types of congenital deformities
• Rheumatoid deformities

The INTO currently has 15 clinics, 255 hospital beds and 21 operating rooms. It offers medical services in the 12 orthopaedic specialties, with a staff of 2,200 employees.

Considered the biggest and best in the country today, in March 2006 the INTO received the highest certification for quality hospitals and medical clinics in the world, granted by the Joint Commission International. This achievement is a result of several actions by the board designed to improve quality.

The history of INTO is also marked by the development of many pioneering efforts in the field of orthopaedics. One example is the structuring of the Centre for Research in Bioengineering and Cellular Therapy (CTCel), which opened in June 2006; it supports studies and training related to bone regeneration using stem cells. For the first time, a core of such research in orthopaedics has been incorporated into a Brazilian public hospital.

For further information contact:
Dr.  Eduardo Vasquez
Instituto Nacional de Traumatologia e Ortopedia
Into/Ministério da Saúde
Dept. of Hand and Reconstructive Surgery
Avenida Brasil, 500 – São Cristovão
CEP 20940-070 Rio de Janeiro – RJ
Brazil

Phone: +55 (0)21 21345470 / (0)21 21345447
Internet: www.into.saude.gov.br