Arthritis is usually a chronic condition and sometimes can lead to disability. However, there are many ways you and your doctor can lessen these problems. One of the ways may be surgery. Joint surgery can offer several benefits:
Relief of pain is the most important benefit of joint surgery. Many people with arthritis have constant pain. Some of this pain can be relieved by rest, heat and cold treatments, exercise, splints, and medication. When these therapies don't lessen the pain, surgery may be considered.
Improved movement and use of a joint are also important benefits of joint surgery. Continuous inflammation and the wearing away of bone and cartilage can cause joints, tendons, and ligaments to become damaged or pulled out of place. Losing the use of a joint, such as a hip, knee, hand, elbow or shoulder, can seriously hamper a person's activities. When this happens, surgery to replace or stabilize the joint may be suggested.
An improvement in the appearance of deformed joints, especially in the hand, can be expected with some types of surgery.
To learn more about surgery for arthritis, try reading the Basics of Surgery for Arthritis article, or read through the list on the left to find an article about surgery for a specific area of the body.
- Basics of Surgery for Arthritis
- Knee Surgery for Rheumatoid Arthritis
- Total Knee Replacement: A Patient's Guide
- Total shoulder joint replacement for shoulder arthritis: Surgery with a dependable, time-tested conservative prosthesis and accelerated rehabilitation can lessen pain and improve function in shoulders with arthritis
- Unicompartmental Knee Arthroplasty: A Patient's Guide to Partial Knee Replacement using Minimally-Invasive Surgery (MIS) Techniques
- What is Hip Replacement? A Review of Total Hip Arthroplasty, Hip Resurfacing, and Minimally-Invasive Hip Surgery
