ABSTRACT
In orthopaedics, register studies have most commonly been used in joint replacement surgery for the surveillance of the quality of the large numbers of different prostheses and techniques in use, many of which are otherwise undocumented. Registers usually record patients with certain diagnoses or treatments in a defined population, and their outcome is assessed. Registers can be valuable tools both in research and in quality control, and they could most likely also be beneficial in most orthopaedic fields.
