Gender Differences in Medical Student Interest in Arthroplasty

Area of Science:

• Orthopaedic Surgery
• Medical Education
• Surgical Subspecialties

Background:

• Understanding medical student interest in orthopaedic subspecialties is limited.
• Orthopaedic residents often match into their preferred fellowship area.
• Arthroplasty is a key orthopaedic subspecialty.

Purpose of the Study:

• To determine medical student interest in arthroplasty.
• To identify factors influencing interest and disinterest in arthroplasty among medical students.
• To explore gender-based differences in interest and influencing factors.

Main Methods:

• Anonymous online survey distributed to medical students interested in orthopaedic surgery.
• Survey conducted across 23 US allopathic and osteopathic medical schools.
• Descriptive statistics and Fisher's exact test used for analysis.

Main Results:

• 183 medical students completed the survey (29% response rate; 56% female).
• Fewer female students were interested in adult reconstruction (arthroplasty) compared to males (10% vs. 29%, p=0.004).
• Interest factors differed: females cited subject matter/patient population; males cited clinical experience/mentorship. Females received less encouragement (0% vs. 11%, p=0.002).

Conclusions:

• Female medical students exhibit significantly lower interest in arthroplasty and receive less encouragement than males.
• Factors driving interest and disinterest in orthopaedic subspecialties vary between genders.
• Addressing gender disparities is crucial for encouraging diverse participation in arthroplasty.