From June 5 to June 9, 2023, Dr. Olms, the distinguished foot and ankle master came to Second People's Hospital of Shenzhen as an international visiting professor and conducted a series of academic exchange activities in the hospital, including outpatient service, ward rounds, surgical instruction, surgical guidance, training on department construction and management, difficult cases discussions, and open classes.

On the afternoon of June 4, we successfully received Dr. Olms,“Mann der ersten Stunde”in foot surgery in Germany at Guangzhou Baiyun Airport. He founded the German Society of Foot and Ankle Surgery in 1996 with only 5 people, now with more than 2,000 members. And he has co-created a system of training in Foot and Ankle Surgery that he teaches worldwide. Over the past 30 years, he has traveled all over the world for surgeries, lectures, and charities, and he always likes to travel far and wide to meet interesting people in the world. 

On June 6, with the help and support of Dr. Olms, the first Sino-German Foot and Ankle Surgery Communication Center between Shenzhen and Flensburg landed in the Department of Foot and Ankle and Hand Surgery of the Second People's Hospital of Shenzhen. A new journey on foot and ankle surgery in China and Germany started ever since. We are grateful to Prof. Nie Guohui, President of Second People's Hospital of Shenzhen, Prof. Xiong Jianyi, Vice President, Prof. Wang Manyi, director of the Department of Orthopedics, Prof. Li Wencui, director of the Department of Foot and Ankle and Hand Surgery and Prof. Liu Jianquan, deputy director for their strong support for discipline construction and talent cultivation.

The Department of Orthopaedics of Second People's Hospital of Shenzhen is listed as the national key clinical specialty. Under the management of director Prof. Li Wencui, the Department of Foot and Ankle and Hand Surgery has provided strong support and good reputation for the hospital which is also the leading department in Shenzhen.The whole team is young, motivated and professional. 

Outpatient Service of the World-Famous Foot and Ankle Master

On the morning of June 5th, Dr. Olms arrived at the Department of Foot and Ankle and Hand Surgery in Second People's Hospital of Shenzhen and had a heated case discussion with the team members of the department. Knowing the arrival of Dr. Olms, the team of Department of Foot and Ankle and Hand Surgery prepared 13 interesting cases in advance to discuss with Dr. Olms. The young doctors in the department also actively participated in the discussion. Everyone put forward their opinions and discussed the operation plan together.

Dr. Olms started his outpatient service from 2p.m. to 3p.m..To ensure quality and enough time for patients to discuss their conditions, he saw only four patients an hour.

Later that afternoon, accompanied by Li Wencui, Director of Department of Foot and Ankle and Hand Surgery and Liu Jianquan, Deputy Director, Dr. Olms took a visit to the operating room of the hospital. The Surgery Center of Second People's Hospital of Shenzhen is located on the 7th and 8th floors of the surgical building, with a total of 30 operating rooms. Two operating rooms are specifically set for the Foot and Ankle and Hand Surgery Department. And these two small operating rooms have created an annual operation volume of more than 2,300 for foot and ankle and hand surgeries.

Dr. Olms said: "Although we only know each other for a short day, I can feel that the Department of Foot and Ankle and Hand Surgery of the Second People's Hospital of Shenzhen is a warm and highly-efficient team where its members help each other and create a positive chemical reaction. No wonder why so many excellent surgeons come from this department and achieve such a proud success." 

Opening Ceremony of Sino-German Foot and Ankle Surgery Communication Center

At 9 a.m. on June 6, Prof. Nie Guohui, President of Second People's Hospital of Shenzhen, Prof. Xiong Jianyi, Vice President, Prof. Fang Zhiye, Director of Medical Department, Prof. Huang Weiren, Director of Discipline Office, Prof. Li Wencui, Director of Foot and Ankle and Hand Surgery, Prof. Liu Jianquan, deputy director, and other team members held a warm welcome ceremony for Dr. Olms’s visit in China.

Second People's Hospital of Shenzhen is listed in high-level hospitals construction project in Guangdong Province, with the largest number of national key clinical specialty construction projects in Shenzhen city. As an important sub-specialty of orthopedics, the construction and development of foot and ankle surgery has been paid great attention to by the whole hospital.

President Nie said in his speech that he was very grateful to Dr. Olms for coming to our hospital for guidance. He hoped that with the support of Dr. Olms, the technical strength and future development of the department of Foot and Ankle Surgery of the hospital would be further improved, and cutting-edge concepts and techniques of both diagnosis and treatment will be introduced to benefit the patients in Shenzhen and surrounding areas.

The management team of Second People's Hospital of Shenzhen and Dr. Olms unveiled the plague of the “Sino-German Foot and Ankle Surgery Communication Center” together, and both sides reached a consensus on the future cooperation.

Difficult Cases Discussion

On the afternoon of June 6, Dr. Olms and Prof. Liu Jianquan, deputy director of Department of Foot and Ankle and Hand Surgery, jointly discussed difficult cases and formulated the best surgical plan for patients. The subject of today's discussion is cartilage damage. Dr. Olms shared that in Germany they usually use platelet-rich plasma mixed with cartilage to fill the defect and cover it with membrane. Meanwhile, Director Liu introduced that at present, they normally take iliac bone for bone grafting and then sealed with fiber glue.

Dr. Olms said that regardless of the method, our common goal is to improve patient's health, and to choose the best solution for the patient.

Tips Sharing During Surgical Guidance

June 7 was the day of surgery. Dr. Olms arrived at the hospital and went directly to the operating room. The first surgery was an arthroscopic repair of the anterior talofibular ligament, performed by Dr. Chen Xiaoqiang, with Director Li Wencui and Dr. Olms watching and guiding.

After the successful surgery, Dr. Olms mentioned that the strong growth of the Foot and Ankle and Hand Surgery team of Second People's Hospital of Shenzhen could not be achieved without the careful guidance of Director Li Wencui, who calmly guided the relevant steps during the surgery, gave suggestions and encouragement. Young doctors can receive guidance while having practical experience. It is beneficial for promoting the virtuous circle of the development of the department.

Dr. Olms, “Mann der ersten Stunde” in foot surgery in Germany, is also known as the "father of hallux valgus in Germany". He is also very glad to be able to help complete this complicated hallux valgus surgery combined with the second metatarsal bone warping together with Director Li Wencui and Deputy Director Liu Jianquan. 

Correcting hallux and lower the second metatarsal bone are the main focus of this surgery. Dr. Olms shared a small tip that he uses a “V-shaped osteotomy” instead of the conventional transverse cut, which can better maintain the rotation of the toe without excessive shortening the length of the toe.

The Foot and Ankle Master’s Open Class

On June 9, Dr. Olms gave a lecture on the topic of flat foot treatment and complications after hallux valgus surgery.

Dr. Olms focused on the surgical methods corresponding to different types of flatfoot. He mentioned that among the various tests to evaluate the patient before surgery, the stability of the subtalar joint cannot be completed by a reaction test, but it can only be tested by the doctor himself touching the patient’s foot and feeling the stability of the joint.

In the open class, the Foot and Ankle and Hand Surgery team was very interested in Dr. Olms's achievements and experience in the field of hallux valgus, and Dr. Olms was also enthusiastic to give another lecture on the complications of hallux valgus surgery. The atmosphere of the department was very active, and the audience and doctors had a heated discussion with Dr. Olms. Everyone benefited a lot from the four-hour class.

The Second People's Hospital of Shenzhen

Department of Foot and Ankle and Hand Surgery 

The Department of Foot and Ankle and Hand Surgery of the Second People's Hospital of Shenzhen is one of the sub-specialties of the first batch of national key clinical specialties in Shenzhen, the high-level clinical key discipline of Guangdong Province, and the medical key specialty of Shenzhen. 

The discipline has a reasonable talent echelon and strong technical strength. It has advanced instruments and equipment such as orthopedic navigation robot, high-definition mini C-arm, high-definition small arthroscope system, and hand-foot minimally invasive power system. The department is the first specialty in Shenzhen municipal hospitals to diagnose and treat peripheral nerve and hand, foot and foot diseases and trauma. The average annual number of surgeries has reached more than 2300, ranking at the forefront of Guangdong Province.

In the field of peripheral nerve and hand and foot surgery, a large number of severe limb deformity correction, severe hand and foot trauma surgical repair, limb deformity correction with external fixator, various skin flap transplantation repair, infected bone nonunion bone transport treatment, wrist, ankle and hand and foot small arthroscopy minimally invasive treatment, hand and foot sports injury repair and reconstruction, peripheral nerve compression minimally invasive release, brachial plexus compression and injury repair, reconstruction of peripheral nerve injury and other clinical cases.

In 2016, under the "Three Famous Project" which is to introduce Famous Experts to contribute the development of Famous Hospitals and Famous Specialties in Shenzhen,  the team of foot and ankle surgery led by Professor Tang Kanglai from Southwest Hospital of Army Medical University, was successfully introduced.The technology of small arthroscopic minimally invasive treatment, hand and foot deformity correction technology, hand and foot sports injury repair technology and other aspects have been rapidly improved.

The department has hosted and undertaken national, provincial and municipal high-level academic conferences and workshops for many times, and jointly held four consecutive international wrist arthroscopic forums and operation workshops with the Department of Hand Surgery of Beijing Jishuitan Hospital, creating a leading role themselves of wrist arthroscopic training in China and even in the Asia-Pacific region.

The department has become the foot and ankle training base of the Foot and Ankle College of the Chinese Medical Association and the Chinese Medical Doctor Association, the training and education base of the National Health Commission, the first member units of the Chinese Hand and Foot Medicine Alliance, and the first batch of orthopedic soft tissue management and suture standardization base.

Many of the specialists of the department have been the members the national, provincial and municipal academic societies of hand and foot surgery, and have served as the chairman and deputy chairman of the professional groups of hand surgery, foot and ankle surgery, wrist arthroscopic minimally invasive surgery, etc. The academic influence of the department has been expanding and the academic status has been improved day by day.