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Founded in 1933, the Academy is the preeminent provider of musculoskeletal education to orthopaedic surgeons and others in the world. Its continuing medical education activities include a world-renowned Annual Meeting, multiple CME courses held around the country and at the Orthopaedic Learning Center, and various medical and scientific publications and electronic media materials. The American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons provides education and practice management services for orthopaedic surgeons and allied health professionals. The Academy also serves as an advocate for improved patient care and informs the public about the science of orthopaedics. Founded at Northwestern University as a not-for-profit organization in 1933, the Academy has grown from a small organization serving less than 500 members to the world's largest medical association of musculoskeletal specialists. The Academy now serves more than 31,000 members internationally.

Members of the Academy, called fellows, are orthopaedists concerned with the diagnosis, care, and treatment of musculoskeletal disorders. The orthopaedist's scope of practice includes disorders of the body's bones, joints, ligaments, muscles, and tendons. Fellows have completed four years of medical school and at least five years of an approved "residency" in orthopaedics. In addition, they must pass a comprehensive oral and written examination, be certified by the American Board of Orthopaedic Surgery, and submit to stringent membership review processes prior to admittance to the Academy.

AAOS will serve the profession, champion the interests of patients, and advance the highest quality musculoskeletal health.

This mission defines AAOS’s fundamental reason for being, and establishes the parameters for its major activities and the defensible criteria against which all goals are established.

Founded by the Academy Board of Directors in 1997, the Association engages in health policy and advocacy activities on behalf of musculoskeletal patients and the profession of orthopaedic surgery.

Since orthopaedics' beginnings, its specialists have treated children suffering from spine and limb deformities. The Greek roots of the word "orthopaedics" are ortho (straight) and pais (child). Early orthopaedists often used braces or other forms of treatment to make the child "straight." A traditional symbol of orthopaedics is the bent tree that has been braced to make it grow straight.

The Academy publishes the Journal of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons.

The annual Academy meeting is the largest medical meeting in the nation with attendance of nearly 30,000.

The annual meeting was held February 25-28, 2009 at the Venetian Sands Expo Center in Las Vegas, Nevada. Next year's meeting is scheduled for March 10-13 in New Orleans, Louisiana.