Orthopedic Surgeons, Except Pediatric
Diagnose and perform surgery to treat and prevent rheumatic and other diseases in the musculoskeletal system.
14,100 people do this job in the US. $358,550 a year.
of the working time. Estimate.
- 9%
- 1%
- 90%
Measured, from Anthropic's usage data (2025). Counts help on part of a task.
On the chosen pace and reliability. Estimate.
Share of the working time within reach, now to 2030
What each choice means: , , , , . Every pace starts from .
At this date and pace, models finish tasks up to 4.4 h long four times in five.
How far this has come
With GPT-4, measured in March 2023, 0% of this job's working time was within reach at . With Claude 3.7 Sonnet, measured in February 2025, 0%. With Claude Mythos Preview (early), measured in April 2026, 9%. Today's estimate: 9%.
A backcast: today's task data with the best model METR had measured by each date. It shows how fast the models have moved, not what anyone forecast at the time.
The tasks
Sorted by . 15 tasks from .
| Task | Kind | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conduct research to develop and test surgical techniques that can improve operating procedures and outcomes related to musculoskeletal injuries and diseases. | 68% | 2.5 work days6.7 h to 1.7 work weeks | Stays with people | |
| Operate on patient's musculoskeletal system to correct deformities, repair injuries, prevent and treat diseases, or improve or restore patient's functions. | 7% | 2.1 h50 min to 4.2 h | Stays with people | |
| Follow established surgical techniques during the operation. | 6% | 1.7 h50 min to 3.3 h | Stays with people | |
| Manage surgery services, including planning, scheduling and coordination, determination of procedures, or procurement of supplies and equipment. | 3% | 50 min25 min to 2.5 h | 95%Half by now | |
| Provide consultation and surgical assistance to other physicians and surgeons. | 3% | 50 min17 min to 2.5 h | Stays with people | |
| Diagnose bodily disorders and orthopedic conditions, and provide treatments, such as medicines and surgeries, in clinics, hospital wards, or operating rooms. | 2% | 38 min17 min to 1.7 h | Stays with people | |
| Diagnose or treat disorders of the musculoskeletal system. | 2% | 38 min17 min to 1.3 h | Stays with people | |
| Analyze patient's medical history, medication allergies, physical condition, and examination results to verify operation's necessity and to determine best procedure. | 2% | 29 min17 min to 50 min | 100%Half by now | |
| Examine patient to obtain information on medical condition and surgical risk. | 1% | 25 min13 min to 50 min | Stays with people | |
| Order and interpret the results of laboratory tests and diagnostic imaging procedures. | 1% | 25 min13 min to 50 min | 100%Half by now | |
| Prepare case histories. | 1% | 21 min13 min to 38 min | 100%Half by now | |
| Prescribe preoperative and postoperative treatments and procedures, such as sedatives, diets, antibiotics, or preparation and treatment of the patient's operative area. | 1.0% | 17 min8 min to 33 min | 100%Half by now |
Within reach, per task: the share of the task's time whose instances are short enough for a model to finish at the chosen date, pace and reliability. Half by: the date half of that time comes within reach.
Jobs that share skills with this one
From O*NET's related occupations. Within reach now and by the end of 2028, long-run pace, four in five.
Where this job works
The industry groups that employ the most of it (BLS, May 2025).
Where the most of these jobs are
The metro areas with the most people in it (BLS, May 2025).