Orthopaedic Surgeon
Orthopaedic Surgeon – Who are they?
Orthopaedic surgeon focuses on helping patients with musculoskeletal issues. Their scope of service include:
- diagnosing and treating conditions that affect bone and musculoskeletal system
- assisting with rehabilitation, which helps one regain movement, strength, range of motion, and flexibility following an injury or surgery
- forming strategies to prevent injury or to keep chronic conditions, such as arthritis, from worsening
Orthopaedic surgeon treats a wide variety of conditions, including but not limited to the following:
- bone fractures
- muscle strains
- joint or back pain
- arthritis
- carpal tunnel syndrome
- injuries to tendons or ligaments, such as sprains, tendonitis, and ACL tears
- limb abnormalities, such as clubfoot and bowlegs
- bone cancer
When to see an orthopaedic surgeon?
You may need to see an orthopaedic surgeon if you have:
- pain or swelling in a bone, joint, or muscle that’s persistent, recurring, or doesn’t respond to at-home care
- a significant decrease in the mobility or range of motion of a joint, such as your knee, elbow, or shoulder
- trouble performing your daily activities
- nerve-related symptoms, such as numbness and tingling or a “pins and needles” sensation in your arms or legs
- an injury to a bone or joint that needs the attention of an orthopaedic specialist
You do not need to be in a need for surgery to consult an Orthopaedic Surgeon. They primarily provides non-invasive medical care to aid recovery. However they may be consulted if the need for surgery arises. Therefore, they are in the best position to help you regain mobility.
Which orthopaedic surgeon to consider?
MBBS (S’pore), MRCS (Edin), M.Med (Ortho), FRCS (Edin) (Ortho)
Dr. Kelvin Tan Guoping is a Singapore-trained Orthopaedic Consultant Surgeon in the Adult Reconstruction Service, Tan Tock Seng Hospital. He completed his postgraduate specialist training in Orthopaedic Surgery and was appointed a Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh in 2015. He is also registered with the Singapore Specialist Accreditation Board.
Dr. Kelvin Tan completed his international Orthopaedic fellowship under renowned Orthopaedic Professor Ross Crawford in Brisbane, Australia in 2017. The emphasis of his training includes Robotic Assisted Joint Replacements, Primary and Revision Hip and Knee Reconstructive surgeries, Complex Hip Reconstruction including Impaction Bone Grafting for failed hip replacements/Congenital Hip dysplasia and Peri-Prosthetic Fracture Fixation.
Dr. Kelvin’s current practice utilizes cutting-edge technology such as Robotics and Computer Navigation to perform hip and knee replacement, including unicompartmental (partial) knee replacement. Dr. Kelvin Tan is also familiar with the various hip approaches in joint replacement, including the Direct Anterior Approach(DAA) to perform total hip replacement
Dr. Kelvin is currently the Clinical Champion in TTSH Knee Replacement Clinical Pathway and anchor of the Enhanced Recovery After Surgery (ERAS) Knee Replacement Taskforce. He is a strong advocate for ERAS after knee replacements, putting in place various protocols to improve patient’s experience and outcomes after knee replacement surgeries despite shorter length of hospital stay. He led a team consisting of surgeon, anesthesiologist, nurses and allied health professional to Royal Jubilee Hospital, Scotland and Norfolk and Norwich Hospital, United Kingdom in 2019 under the Prestigious Ministry of Health HMDP Scholarship to further bolster our ERAS protocols in this region.
Besides clinical work, Dr. Kelvin Tan holds academic positions with both Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore (NUS) and Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine, Nanyang Technological University (NTU). He is appointed Adjunct Assistant Professor by NUS in 2020 and is also a Core Clinical Faculty Member and Clinical Competencies Committee Member of the National Healthcare Group Orthopaedic Residency Program, mentoring the next generation of Orthopaedic surgeons in Singapore.
Dr. Kelvin Tan has a keen focus on research and academic work. He has published internationally in peer-reviewed medical journals, presented both locally and internationally, and has been invited locally and overseas to teach and demonstrate his techniques in Hip and Knee Surgery. He is also a certified Robotic Trainer.
Dr. Kelvin Tan Conversational Languages: English, Mandarin, Teochew, Hokkien
Clinical Interests
- Robotics and Computer Navigated Hip/Knee Replacement
Complex and Revision Hip/Knee Surgeries - Impaction bone grafting
Anterior Approach Hip Replacement
Peri-prosthetic fracture
