A. Elective Orthopaedics

1. A wide knowledge of orthopaedic disease in both children and adults which includes congenital and genetically determined disorders, metabolic disorders, degenerative diseases and disturbances, and disabilities resulting from disorders of the central and peripheral nervous systems. This knowledge should extend from clinical diagnosis through management to rehabilitation.
2. A sound knowledge of the standard operative procedures used and their complications.
3. A knowledge of the standard investigative techniques used in orthopaedics.
4. A knowledge of specialised areas such as the spine, the hand, etc.

B. Trauma

1. A sound knowledge of the care of musculoskeletal trauma from the initial resuscitation through reconstructive surgery to complications and their management, and relevant aspects of rehabilitation. Musculoskeletal trauma includes fractures of limb bone, joint injuries, spinal injuries including neurological damage, pelvic fractures, injuries to muscle, tendon, ligament and nerve, hand injuries, multiple injuries and the principles of shock and resuscitation.
2. An adequate knowledge of visceral, neurosurgical and skin trauma, such as would enable an orthopaedic surgeon to undertake primary diagnosis and treatment of these injuries if specialist expertise were not immediately available.

C. Basic Science

1. A knowledge of surgical anatomy relevant to the practice of orthopaedic and trauma surgery.
2. The development of the musculoskeletal system.
3. The physiology and biochemistry of musculoskeletal tissues.
4. The pathology of common conditions including tumors, degenerative and inflammatory arthritis, metabolic bone disease and fracture healing.
5. Bacteriology encountered in orthopaedic practice including operating theatre design and the role of antibiotics.
6. The science of investigative techniques, including the principles of radiography and the effects of radiation on the skeleton, the physical basis of computerised tomography, ultrasound and magnetic resonance imaging, the scientific basis of electrophysiological investigations.
7. Biomechanics relevant to the musculoskeletal system. This would include the physical properties of the tissues we deal with (bone, cartilage, and implants for reconstructive surgery and fracture fixation), patterns of gait and limb movement and the effect of forces acting on the skeleton.
8. Working knowledge of statistics relevant to orthopaedic practice.

Reference Books and Literature

Please note that there is no definite source of reading dedicated to the EBOT exam exclusively. However, the content of the exam is based on the Syllabus of the European Educational Programme Curriculum, which you can consult here.

Any good updated source of established knowledge of Orthopaedics & Traumatology may help you study for the mentioned curriculum. As a recommendation of an updated source of recent knowledge evolution, you might wish to check out the EFORT Open Reviews (EOR) open access journal, which acts as a major source of education and guidance in surgical practice for surgeons and trainees in Europe, or other educational material from EFORT. For more information on the EFORT Open Reviews, please go to https://www.efort.org/education-and-courses/efort-open-reviews/ or to https://eor.bioscientifica.com/