Common Myths And Facts Regarding Joint Replacement Surgery

Orthopaedics & Joint Replacement | Posted on 05/12/2020 by RBH

Joint replacement is a surgery involving the cessation and replacement of parts of an arthritic or damaged joint with a device called a prosthesis. This can be either metal or plastic or even ceramic.

This is a replacement movement of a normal, healthy joint. Surgeons have been performing these for a long time, almost for decades. These can also be Total knee replacements or hip replacements.

Nobody in fact guarantees to the patient that this surgery will be 100% successful. It has its own share of risks. But we have to believe in the orthopedic surgeons as they know a lot about the mechanics of this type of surgery.  The lifespan of this surgery is more than any other kind and hence more and more patients opt for these.

Apart from this some effective exercises also have some role to rectify joint problems, but if they have in their earlier stage.

What people may think, after a total knee replacement, your knee is not the real one. We are superheroes in our own right; our knee doesn’t do any special tricks. If I kick a brick wall because I have metal in my knee, that may get damaged too.

Joint Replacement Surgery Common Myths: – Normally this kind of problem can see in aged people and in India, osteoarthritis is very common, especially in females.

Joint replacement especially in India with a number of knee problems after a certain age; elderly people have the problem of knee pain.

Hips and replacements have come into acceptance after an accident or slip disk problem.

Major symptoms are: –

• When it will get worst you cannot walk properly.
• It becomes very difficult to sit in one place for a long.
• It is very painful at night and early morning.
• In Indians, these causes happen due to age factors and the biggest cause is due to sitting on the ground for praying, eating, and other things.

Is Joint Surgery Successful?

Yes, it is successful but after surgery, the patients have to follow Doctors' instructions.

Which all Joints can go in for a replacement?

Usually, hip, knee, ankle, wrist, shoulder, and elbow joints are replaced. Other than this such as the thumb, big toe, and finger joints can also be replaced when necessary.

What is the common risk of joint replacement?

Possible Complications of Joint Replacement Surgery

Infection around the prosthesis: Blood clotting. Malfunction of the prosthesis (may be caused by wear and tear, breakage, dislocation, or loosening); Nerve injury (although rare, nerves in the surrounding area may become damaged during the surgery.

Knee replacement is very common when a knee is so severely damaged by disease or injury, an artificial knee replacement may be considered. If we look at the figures, the common age for knee replacement is between ages 60 to 80 years old.

More into the experiences to remove any myths:

From A patient’s diary: I got diagnosed fifteen years ago and my life was never the same (not totally negative) Life after that took me on to a path of pain. I felt the epitome of disability. But what it actually gave back to me was a path of hope, faith, spirituality, healing, acceptance, strength, bravery, and purpose. I was in jitters about how my life will be post-surgery but trust me I have bounced back with life. Now, I can walk and do all my daily routine work easily. Before I decided to go on for this, I used to limp, walk with a knee bent, and often was in pain and in swelling too. A voice inside me always told me something was seriously wrong and the x-rays proved that it was indeed right.

For the procedure that I may or may not opt for, the total knee replacement surgery, my surgeon gave me two choices: either live with it or have surgery to correct it. I chose and it was explained that they would only do surgery if and when I was ready. However, being a young man with a desire to stay socially active, the main concern was my quality of life. In addition, my team of surgeons suggested to not delaying the surgery as it may develop possible risks of affecting my body’s alignment, hip, and ankle joints, which all work together with the knee.

So, three months after my initial checks, and after I thought about all of my choices, I decided to have a total knee replacement surgery.  What surfaced was something good, something bad, and something ugly.

Some of my experiences with three truths:

• Life improves after the surgery. Like almost a new life, you feel like a new person. Very rarely, your knee will be affected by arthritis or injury, but the quality of life improves significantly after surgery.
• Pain still continues. But yes, it reduces over time and you can do all your daily chores and can perform your daily routine work normally.
• It is really effective and less complicated. And in case you have such problems like mine, do not think further. You can live your life without pain and not depend on others.

Conclusion

The life of a cripple comes with many negatives which take a person down in all possible ways. The boon to this is joint replacement surgery which is like living life again, almost as a second chance and medical science is working on making this long-term with minimalistic stress on the patients.