After the founding of the People’s Republic of China, with the reform of economy, politics and culture, the scattered individual medical practices began to go together in hospital. After 1956, hospitals of traditional Chinese medicine had been successively set up in provinces and cities of China, with a special department of orthopedics and traumatology in some areas, special hospitals or institutes were also set up. Colleges of traditional Chinese medicine had been successively founded in most of the provinces and municipalities for training talents in orthopedics and traumatology. In 1980s, in some TCM colleges department of orthopedics and traumatology was set up. Besides undergraduates, postgraduates working for both master’s and doctoral degrees have also been enrolled in some of the departments.
 
After the founding of new China, the workers in orthopedics and traumatology, on the basis of carrying on the experience in orthopedics and traumatology of TCM and applying modern scientific knowledge and methods, summarized eight new manipulations of bone-setting, and developed new external splintage. They have developed a set of new therapies for fracture in which oral medication of Chinese herbs, external treatment and functional exercises are taken in combination. They set forth therapeutic principles for treating fracture, i.e., "combination of movement and rest", "paying attention to both bone and tendon", "both external and internal treatment", and "cooperation of doctor and patient", gaining a good result of quick healing of fracture, good recovery of function, less suffering and complication. This makes treatment of fracture go up to a new level, giving a great influence both at home and abroad.

During the past 20 years, further progress has been made in the treatment of fractures, soft tissue injuries and osteoarticular disorders. A great progress has been made in the treatment of diaphysial fracture of bones of limbs and intracapsular fracture in ankle joint, elbow joint and wrist joint. A good result has been gained in the treatment of compression fracture of thoracolumbar vertebral body by applying pad-pillow combined with functional exercises. A satisfactory result has been achieved in the treatment of malunion by manual fracture followed by retreatment of the fresh fracture. For open fractures, Chinese herbs for external application are used on the surface of wound for promoting the generation of the bones.
After union, the scar is soft and the function of the limbs is good. The instruments for reduction and fixation for fracture have been further improved and created. For prolapse of lumbar intervertebral discs and cervical spendylosis, traction, massage, iontophoresis therapy of Chinese herbs and oral medication of Chinese herbs are used in combination, the result is satisfactory. New achievements have been obtained in the treatment of soft tissue injuries and sport injuries.

Over the past 10 years, academic exchanges of orthopedics and traumatology of TCM are growing day by day. On the one hand traditional efficacious methods are spread; on the other hand, the mechanisms in the treatment of orthopedic and traumatological diseases are deeply studied by applying advanced scientific techniques. In recent years, orthopedics and traumatology has unprecedentedly grown because modern scientific techniques in optical microscope, electron microscope, electrophysiology, biochemistry, biomechanics, isotope, computer, nuclear magnetic resonance, etc. are used in both basic scientific research and clinical practice. Since the beginning of reform and opening-up to the outside, orthopedics and traumatology of TCM has gone abroad, exchange between China and foreign countries are growing day by day. Orthopedics and traumatology of TCM has just seen a spring of science. It will grow sturdy, and make a greater contribution to the human health.