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The Brazilian small bone & joint orthopedic market is comprised of the shoulder reconstruction, elbow repair, hand & wrist devices and foot & ankle devices market segments. This market is separate from the large joint and trauma markets, although the distinction is sometimes unclear. As a result, defining small joint devices can be challenging. Similar to large joints, many of the small joint devices are involved in elective procedures, and consequently these devices generally command higher selling prices. Conversely, the small joint device market is also similar to the trauma device market, where devices may not have high prices or significant price growth, but are involved in essential surgery and are always in demand. Small joints such as shoulders, elbows, hands and feet have not received as much attention as hip and knee treatments until recently, but have experienced strong and consistent growth because of the clinically underserved areas that they represent.

The U.S. bracing and supports market includes knee bracing and supports, ankle bracing and supports, spinal orthoses, back soft goods, upper extremity bracing and soft goods and pain management (including cold therapy and pain infusion pumps). Most of these markets are expected to experience slow to moderate growth because of an aging U.S. population, growing prevalence of obesity and osteoarthritis and increasing use of braces as prophylaxis to prevent sporting injuries. The knee bracing and supports market is expected to remain the largest segment, but overall growth will be driven by the spinal orthosis and pain management markets. The spinal orthosis segment is particularly fast-growing due to the strong correlation between an aging population and the incidence of lower back problems that may require spinal orthoses to prevent further injury or control stability post-surgery.