Joint replacement surgery has given a new lease of life to many who have suffered from pain due to damaged joints. Hip and knee are the most commonly replaced joints.

Shoulder, ankle, elbow, wrist and finger joints are very rarely replaced in our country.

 Joint replacement has enabled patients with painfull, damaged and deformed joints to live normal life .

How it is done?
The ends of two bones which form a joint are covered by smooth tissue known as cartilage. This tissue is damaged by various diseases or injury, which in turn produces pain. Eventually the cartilage is totally worn out and the bone ends rub against each other causing severe pain and disability. In joint replacement surgery the damaged surface of the joint is removed and replaced with an artificial joint called ‘prosthesis’.

How joint is joint damaged ?

Osteoarthritis is the commonest cause of damage requiring joint replacement. Other causes are rheumatoid arthritis, fracture involving the joint causing arthritis, poor blood supply (avascular necrosis) and various childhood problems causing delayed arthritis.

Shoulder replacement

Shoulder replacement is done in various ways; the traditional Hemiarthroplasty (Neer’s prosthesis) , total shoulder replacement, Reverse Shoulder Arthroplasty and the newer surface replacement.

 In the traditional shoulder replacement, the diseased ball  and the surface of the socket are removed and replaced with artificial components.

These can be fixed either with a type of glue known as bone cement or without any such material and bone is allowed to incorporate in the specially made components.

In surface replacement which is meant for younger patients, very minimal bone is removed from the shoulder bone(Humerus).

Knee replacement

This is the commonest joint replaced in India. Here the diseased ends of the thigh and leg bones and sometimes the surface of the knee cap are replaced. The components are made of alloys and poly ethylene.

 

Other:

Hip, Elbow, Wrist, Ankle & Small joint Replacements.

 

*Reconstructive joint surgery:

 

Shoulder & Knee-

 

Skillful and anatomical reconstruction of intraarticular fracture of these joints is very important to provide painless, normal and stable joints.

 

Providing smooth & congruous joint surfaces is very essential to prevent future development of Osteoarthritis.