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Everybody falls. Every year one in three older Americans fall. For people aged 65 and older, falls are the leading cause of fractures and fatal injuries. More than 90% of hip fractures are caused by a fall, according to the National Hospital Discharge Survey and women account for 75% of all hip fractures.
A 2016 study suggests that a person who is morbidly obese with a Body Mass Index (BMI) of more than 40 would benefit from weight loss, and should start losing weight as much as two years before their knee or hip joint replacement.
Like many people (even those who don’t perform nightly), Billy Joel had to decide whether to have BOTH hip joints replaced in one surgery…or first have one hip replaced, recover, then have the second replaced, also called staged replacement. He decided on doing both at the same time, also called bilateral joint replacement.
While parents and grandparents might be struggling with the signs of aging (bad knee and hip joints, painful shoulders) orthopedic youth injuries are increasing at an alarming rate, especially in baseball.
For most recipients of a knee or hip joint replacement, the elimination of chronic pain or discomfort is a major benefit.
We don’t walk on our shoulders like we do on our knees and hips. So, you typically don’t develop wear-and-tear osteoarthritis in a shoulder in the way you do in the knee and hip.
Joint replacement surgery is one of the most common and successful procedures known today,” says McLeod Orthopedic Specialist Peter Lukowski, MD. “However, we like to help patients delay surgery if possible. Eating the right foods and avoiding the wrong ones can help delay surgery, as well as reduce stiffness and pain.
Because a patient faces considerable bleeding during a knee or hip joint replacement (less so with some of the newer minimally invasive, the Orthopedic Surgeon usually has the patient halt any blood thinners. However after surgery, many patients may be asked to take aspirin or more powerful blood thinners.
Many people associate the serious injury to the knee’s Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) with the rough contact of football. That statement is half true. It is a serious injury but often not due to on-field contact.
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