Musculoskeletal disorders,whether through disease orinjury, are the leading causeof disability around the world,affecting one in every fouradults and accounting for 25% ofthe total cost of illness. Road trafficaccidents continue to inflict lifelongdisability on many active membersof the population. In recognition ofthese alarming statistics and anincreasing incidence of bone andjoint disease associated with anageing population, the World HealthOrganisation (WHO) and the UnitedNations declared 2000-2010 ‘TheBone and Joint Decade’.

A recent study reported by theUK Clinical Research Collaborationhighlighted the relatively smallamount of funding for musculoskel-etal research in the UK comparedwith cancer (27% of total funds),neurological disease (16%), infection(13%) and cardiovascular disease(9%). In stark contrast, musculo-skeletal diseases received less than5% of overall funding but it is inter-esting to note that these diseasesaccount for the largest number ofdays lost from work and are themost common cause of long-termdisability.

I know that during the forth-coming festive season there are

many demands made of youbut, at this particular timeof giving, would appeal toall of you to consider don-

ating just £10 (£1 for eachyear of the Decade). Orthopaedic

and trauma research may not havethe immediacy of some of the char-itable appeals you will receive at thistime but what it can do, as many ofyou will know from personal exper-ience, is dramatically increase thequality of our lives, enabling ourbones and joints to keep us mobileas we live longer, and help us enjoyour retirement years.

Our own BOA members this yearsupported our appeal with donationsof £100,000. Please join them andsupport the Decade Appeal with adonation of just £10 by completingthe form on the back page. For theprice of a couple of pairs of socks ortights, you will be making a lastingimpact on Britain’s mobility!

With warmest good wishes toyou all for Christmas and bestwishes for a healthy and mobileNew Year!

Ian Leslie, ChairmanBritish Orthopaedic Foundation

J O I N T A C T I O N

Newspaper of the British Orthopaedic Foundation

SIssue 2 Dec 2006

Welcome to the Christmasissue of Joint Action News.Thank you to everyone whoresponded to the last newspaperwith comments and support. Wereally do value your input and aregrateful to you for your interest.

We are very fortunate toonce again have the support ofDePuy UK who are generouslycovering the cost of producingthis paper which means that wecan bring it to you free ofcharge. We are a small charityand are committed to keepingadministrative overheads to anabsolute minimum to ensure thatwe can make the very most ofyour generous donations. If youwould rather read the newspaperon the website and be contactedby email, I would be grateful ifyou could complete the form onthe back page and return it to us.Postage and production costssaved can be put back intoresearch.

In addition to informationabout the latest in bone and jointresearch, this issue offers lots ofideas of how you can help tokeep Britain mobile long after thelast pine needles have beenswept up from the tree!

Wishing you a very MerryChristmas and ahealthy and happynew year.

Julia SmithFundraiser,

Joint Action

This is a free newspaper sponsored by DePuya company

Orthopaedic Research Funds:the need has never been greater

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Little Shop of HorrorsThe Miller Centre in Caterham is afully functional theatre that alsohouses a day centre which providesa wide range of activities. Its recentproduction of The Little Shop ofHorrors ran for ten days and att-racted about 100 people each night.We are very grateful to The MillerCentre Players for nominating JointAction to receive the proceeds ofalmost £2,000 from their recentproduction.

From Plaster to Paris?When not setting our bones inplaster, Ian Johnston from Scotlandcan be found pounding the streets

in training for marathons. In Sept-ember he completed the GlasgowHalf Marathon and now he istraining for the Edinburgh Marathonnext year. Who knows, maybe thenext stop will be Paris?

GiftAid maximised the value ofIan’s sponsorship money of £293.50by bringing in an extra £92 from theInland Revenue. GiftAid can bearranged at no additional cost tofundraisers, but Ian’s experienceshows what a dramatic difference itcan make. Please try to use GiftAidfor all your donations and events.The form is on the back page of thisnewspaper.

Balloon RaceEdward Compton is an ortho-paedic surgeon from Notting-hamshire and is only too awareof the need to raise funds fororthopaedic research. Edwardorganised the balloon race as anattraction for his village GardenParty. About 150 heliumballoons were released makingan eye-catching finale to theGarden Party. A prize wasawarded to the finder andsender of the balloon whichtravelled the furthest distance toSheffield. Thank you Edward forthis spectacular fundraiser.

Fundraising round the regions

Cambridge fun run for Joint ActionEven the rain couldn’t dampen the spirits and enthusiasm of over

100 participants of the St John’s College School Fun Run. The schoolencouraged pupils and parents to run 3.5 miles to raise funds for

Joint Action’s research and also promote the importance of exercisein keeping bones healthy. The youngest runner was just four years

old, and overall St John’s raised £700 for Joint Action. Many thanksto St John’s College School for supporting Joint Action.

Shirley Dixon thought that her gardening days were numbered when her kneesbecame so painful that she couldn’t bend to do the weeding. Luckily she hadboth knees replaced and she has regained full movement. Her garden remainsher pride and joy, and in gratitude for her successful surgery, she is selling cuttingsand excess produce from her garden and allotment, to raise funds for JointAction. Thank you Shirley – Joint Action research really `Knee(ds) you!!

Enormous thanks to all those fundraisers featured, and also to all those who havedonated this year but whom we do not have space to acknowledge personally.

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John Getty took over as President of the British OrthopaedicAssociation in September. Based in Sheffield, John haskindly nominated Joint Action to receive the proceeds

from his local fundraising ball for the past two years. TheBall is held in the glorious surroundings of The ConsortHotel.

Club Claret is a wine club helpinggood causes raise funds from topquality wine. We are joining forceswith Club Claret to offer you a caseof festive red and white delights.

REDVictoria Australia Cabernet

Sauvignon, ‘03Chilean Merlot, ‘04CA’Lunghetta Merlot, ‘05,from

Veneto Italy

South African Cinsault Pinotage, ‘04Shiraz Cabernet from Southern

Australia ‘04Victoria Australia Merlot, 2004

WHITEPinot Grigio, Delle Venezie, ‘05Chardonnay, Victoria Australia, ‘05Sauvignon, from Carcassonne, ‘05Semillon Chardonnay from

Australia, ‘05Chilean Chardonnay,’04

South African Sauvignon Blanc, ‘06

To share a case of 12 fine wineswith your true love this Christmaswill cost only £74.00 + deliverywhich includes a heart warming£10 donation to Joint Action. Toplace your Christmas order pleasecall Club Claret on 0870 8503161 or visit their websit onwww.clubclaret.co.uk/boa.CHEERS!!

The President is ‘on the ball’

12 nights of Christmas

Donate withEvery Click!Information technology is moving fast.

Nowmore and more of us are surfing the

world wide web as part of our everyday

personal, business and school lives. But

did you know that your web activity can

be rewarded with donations to your

favourite charity?

www.everyclick.com is an internet

search engine with a big difference – it

donates half of its revenue to charity.

This search engine is as fast, compre-

hensive and user friendly as its well-

known competitors. But every time you

search the net, a donation will be made

to the British Orthopaedic Foundation.

Please make www.everyclick.com/uk/

britishorthopaedicfoundation your home

page and make sure you use it when-

ever you search the web. It does not

cost us, or you, a penny so please use it

to support our work.

To join this great event please call Rowena Williams on 07747

627 648 or email on rowenawilliams@btinternet. com.

The Joint Action Golf Tournament 2006 came to a triumphant

conclusion on 6th October with the Final at Woburn Golf and

Country Club. All 8 regional heats were fully subscribed and over

500 supporters enjoyed a morning of golf at some of Britain’s top

golfing venues.

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Join the ActionPlease return this form to: Joint Action, British Orthopaedic Association, 35-43 Lincoln’s Inn Fields, London WC2A 3PECharity No. 1066994 Patron: HRH The Prince of Wales

�� I would like to support the DECADE APPEAL with a one-off donation of £10 or £ ………………………….

cheques: made payable to Joint Action

�� credit card: VISA/Mastercard/American Express/Delta*/UK Maestro* (please circle as necessary)Card No. ………………………….…………………………. Expiry Date …………………………. Start Date ………………………….

Issue No* …………………………. Security Code …………………………. (this is the last 3 digits on reverse of card)

�� a monthly* or annual* donation by standing order of £ …………………………. (please circle one)Name of my Bank …………………………. …………………………. Bank Address …………………………. ………………………….

………………………….………………………….…………………………. Postcode …………………………. ………………………….

Current Account No. ………………………………………………… Sort Code ………………………….

Please start my standing order in Month …………………………. Year …………………………. (allow 14 days to activate)

British Orthopaedic Association Account at Natwest Bank, Marylebone & Harley St. Branch, PO Box 2021, 10 Marylebone High Street, London W1A 1FH. Account No. 12773077 Sort Code: 50 30 25.

Please return this form to the BOA, at the address above, in the first instance who will then forward it to your bank.

Using GiftAid means that if you are a UK tax payer, for every £10 that you donate to Joint Action, the Inland Revenueadds £2.80 at no extra cost to you. Imagine what a difference that could make, and it doesn’t cost you a thing.So if you want your donation to go further, GiftAid it. Just complete this form and return it to us.First Name …………………………. …………………………. Surname …………………………. …………………………. …………………………. …………………….............................…….

Address …………………………. …………………………. …………………………. …………………………. …………………………. …………………………. Postcode ………………………….

�� I want all donations I’ve made since 6 April 2000 and all donations in the future to be GiftAid until I notify you otherwise.To qualify for GiftAid, what you pay in income tax or capital gains must at least equal the amount we will claim in the tax year.

Your support for Joint Action is greatly valued. To keep administrative costs to a minimum please note thatacknowledgements will not be sent unless specifically requested. �� I require a receipt.

�� I would like to reduce postage costs by being contacted by email at .................................................................................................................................................................. (please insert your email address).

Professor George Bentley hasundertaken the first UK surgeryusing a new operation calledAutologous Chondrocyte Imp -lant ation (ACI) where cells aretaken from the knee, cultured ina lab, then put back in to fill thegap left by damaged cartilage.Professor Bentley of the RoyalNational Orthopaedic Hospital,

where his unit has now perf or -med about 550 such operationsas part of a clinical trial, says“ACI is ingenious and exciting –the first cell engineering that’sbeen really successful”.The British Orthopaedic Foundation’sGrants Committee is currently und -ertaking extensive peer review onthe 32 research grant applications it

has received this year. These applic -ations cover a wide range ofresearch areas from basic science toclinical research. The review processensures that we fund the veryhighest quality of research and welook forward to outlining whichresearch is being supported in thenext issue. Early details of this willbe available on www.boa.ac.uk.

Research marches on

�

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