What is Joint Replacement Surgery?

A photo of different medicinal drugs, tablets and pills on blue background.

Joint replacement surgery is a surgical procedure used to replace the parts of joints that are damaged or worn out. This type of surgery is performed on arthritic joints, which means they have become painful and swollen due to osteoarthritis. The good thing is that with the professionals, same day discharge Oklahoma City is possible. Joints are complex structures made up of bones and soft tissue called cartilage. Joint replacement surgery involves replacing or fixing diseased or broken bones with artificial prostheses, metal or plastic replacements that fit into the spaces left by the original joint surfaces.

Here are the different types of joint replacement surgeries:

Types of joint replacement surgeries

Total knee replacement (TKR): This removes the damaged surfaces of a knee joint and replaces them with an artificial prosthesis that has smooth surfaces and fits snugly onto the TKR implant. The implant is a foundation for the new knee joint surface and stabilizes it against walking, running, and jumping stresses.

Shoulder joint replacement: Shoulder joint replacement surgery involves the removal of a damaged or diseased joint and replacement with a prosthetic implant. Shoulder joint replacement surgery is performed to relieve pain and restore motion. The disease or injury that causes shoulder joint pain can be due to arthritis, bursitis, or an arthritic change in the bone itself.

Total elbow replacement: Total elbow replacement is a surgical procedure that restores motion and function to the elbow joint. The procedure involves taking bone from the patient’s hip, inserting it into the joint, and then replacing damaged cartilage in the joint. This technique is typically used if there is severe arthritis in the elbow or if the condition has progressed enough to cause deformity and loss of motion.

Wrist joint replacement: Wrist joint replacement is a common procedure. It is a surgical approach to replace the ball and socket joints of the wrist with artificial joints. A wrist joint replacement can be performed as a single stage or combined with another procedure, such as an elbow or shoulder replacement.

Wrist joint replacement surgery can help people with arthritis and bone loss in their wrists. The surgeon will remove the damaged bone and cartilage from your wrist and then insert an artificial joint that looks, feels, and moves like your natural wrist joint.

Reverse total shoulder replacement: Reverse total shoulder replacement is usually performed in older patients with shoulder osteoarthritis. This procedure replaces the damaged joint with an artificial ball and socket. The artificial ball allows the humeral head to move more freely, allowing for a greater range of motion and less pain. In addition, this device’s new design helps reduce stress on adjacent joints and soft tissues and improve balance.

Unicompartmental knee replacement: This is a surgical procedure to replace the damaged cartilage and damaged menisci in the knee joint. It involves replacing the damaged cartilage and menisci with synthetic materials.

The surgeon will make two incisions on the front and back of the knee, one on each side. The incisions are made just above where the kneecap attaches to the thigh bone. The surgeon removes the damaged cartilage and meniscus from the inside out. He then replaces it with a synthetic material that looks like cartilage but has properties similar to real cartilage. The new synthetic material is covered with skin grafts taken from another part of your body, such as your belly. The grafts help keep everything in place while it heals.

Joint replacement surgery is a surgical procedure that replaces worn, damaged or diseased joints with artificial replacements. This type of surgery may be recommended for people who have severe pain and discomfort from arthritis, as well as people who have suffered severe joint damage due to injury or disease. Joint replacement surgery can also treat patients with advanced arthritis that limits movement and causes severe stiffness and other problems. If you have joint problems, contact Mitchell Hip and Knee professionals today.