If you're 45 or older and experiencing joint pain or limited motion, you've probably begun thinking about your options. The good news is that joint care has come a long way in the past 20 years. We talked with Murillo Adrados, M.D., orthopaedic surgeon with our Department of Orthopaedics, to get his insights on the latest in joint replacement surgery. Read on for what he had to say.
Q: What has changed in joint replacement since the days when my parents had their surgeries done?
Dr. Adrados: Today's hip and knee replacements are superior to those from two decades ago. Patients enjoy quicker recoveries, experience fewer medical issues during surgery and have substantially lower rates of implant failure over time. As a joint replacement surgeon, I have the privilege of witnessing the transformative impact of well-performed total hip or knee replacements.
Q: I’ve heard that some patients can now go home the same day they have joint replacement surgery—is that true, and is it safe?
Dr. Adrados: Yes! The majority of our patients go home the same day of surgery. Advanced surgical approaches coupled with improved pain management techniques allow patients to begin walking within hours of their surgery. The goal is for patients to resume their usual routines as quickly as possible. This is perhaps the biggest difference in joint replacements today compared to 20 years ago. The earlier people are moving and being active, the less complications we see.
Q: What’s the number one thing I can do to set myself up for a successful joint replacement?
Dr. Adrados: The healthier and more active you are, the easier it is to rehab and the safer the surgery. We must follow a lot of protocols and processes to make sure folks are medically safe for surgery. If you haven’t seen your family physician for a while, for example, there may be other more pressing problems that need attention before we can get you to surgery. My recommendation is to stay on top of your medicines and yearly physicals and keep as active as you can.
Q: What do you wish more patients knew about joint replacement?
Dr. Adrados: Great question—before we can get to the point of surgery, an essential part of my role is education. People often get information from online sources where facts are mixed with marketing ploys.
While there are many exciting new technologies in orthopaedics, and I might use various ones in specific cases, they do not necessarily provide better outcomes for most patients and can inflate the cost of surgery. I’m happy to answer questions from my patients about technologies they’ve heard of, but I want patients to know the difference between fact and advertising. That’s one reason why doing education sessions is so important to me—maybe just as important as the surgeries themselves.
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