Joint Replacement Center
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What is Joint Replacement?

Joint replacement was one of the greatest orthopaedic surgical advances of the 20th century. In joint replacement surgery, an arthritic or damaged joint—usually the shoulder, hip or knee—is replaced with an artificial joint (prosthesis) designed to function much like a normal joint.

Though the extent of improvement in use of the affected joint varies with each patient, pain relief following joint replacement surgery is usually dramatic. The strength of muscles surrounding the arthritic joint generally improves, as does the mobility of the joint itself. People who have had joint replacement surgery can generally look forward to years of more comfortable living that would not have been possible otherwise.

Arthritis is the most common reason why a person may need joint replacement.
Of the hundreds of types of arthritis, three are the main cause of joint damage that may lead to the need for total joint replacement. These are osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, and trauma-related arthritis. All of these types of arthritis can cause severe pain and loss of mobility.

• Osteoarthritis—Sometimes called “wear-and-tear” arthritis or degenerative joint disease, osteoarthritis is a condition in which the tissues that normally enable the joint functions to breakdown, thus leaving the bones unprotected and rubbing against each other. Osteoarthritis has a strong genetic link and is most common in people over age 60.
• Trauma-related arthritis—this type of arthritis can develop in a joint that has been injured by a blow or fall.
• Rheumatoid arthritis—a type of inflammatory arthritis, rheumatoid arthritis is an autoimmune disorder. The immune system attacks the body’s own tissue, causing the membranes that line the joints to become inflamed. Rheumatoid arthritis can strike at any age, and is more common in women.

Joint replacement will only be considered after non-surgical treatment and other surgical alternatives have failed to relieve pain and disability. Although there is no cure for arthritis, total joint replacement coupled with post-surgical rehabilitation has restored a pain-free life to many thousands of patients.