If you are over 50 years of age, the most common problem that you will endure is pain in the joints. Older individuals experience problems while moving because of the pain in the joints. The best alternative to this condition is joint replacement. It is one of the best medical advancements that helps to regain joint movement in individuals. According to a report in India Times, knee replacement surgeries have gone up drastically in India. More than 2.5 lac people undergo this treatment each year.
Joint Replacement or Joint Preservation: What’s Your Option?
The place where two bones meet is known as the joint. To have good quality movement and flexibility, these joints are pivotal. The joints are protected by cartilage, synovial membrane, and fluid to enhance their smooth movement. With age or with excess use, this synovial membrane and cartilage wear out. This is where doctors usually recommend joint replacement. If this procedure is not done, patients cannot move freely and quickly. It will affect their movement and their overall quality of life. But is joint replacement the only solution for worn-out joints? If doctors suggest alternate treatment options like joint preservation, can we consider it? If you are in a dilemma with joint replacement or joint preservation, What’s your option? You can have a good knowledge of both to answer this question.
What is joint replacement?
Joint replacement is a surgical procedure. It is also known as arthroplasty (arthro means joints and plasty means repair). In this procedure, the doctors remove the heads of the bones that articulate in the joint. They replace these bone heads with artificial joints. These prostheses are made of plastic, metal, or ceramic. This metal can move smoothly and is impossible to wear out. This is also a treatment of choice for those who have broken their joints in accidents and falls. The most common joints for which doctors suggest this procedure are the knee joint, shoulder joint, and the hip joint.
What is joint preservation?
Joint preservation is a technique in which the doctor preserves the deteriorating joint so that the patient can prevent joint replacement surgery altogether. These procedures will mitigate the complications of joint replacement surgery. For example, a surgery like knee osteotomy helps to realign the limb. At the end of the procedure, the patient can get rid of the pain. In this procedure, the doctor will take the pressure off the joint. This is done by removing the wedge of the bone, dividing the bone, and also by realigning the joint.
Joint Replacement Vs. Joint Preservation
In joint replacement, ceramic and metal prostheses replace the joint. In joint preservation, the doctors realign the joints to enhance movement. So, joint replacement or joint preservation, What’s your option? The choice depends on one’s medical condition and doctor’s decision. Joint preservation surgeries will include
- Cartilage repair,
- Patches
- Grafts from other joints of the same person
- Grafts from a donor as a transplant
It also focuses on correcting the deformities to enhance the mechanics of the joint. This procedure helps in relieving pain exceptionally well. However, it is mandatory to have the right treatment for the ideal joint condition.
Joint replacement, on the other hand, is the best treatment option for those with long-term joint damage. The procedure is relatively safe. Recovery time is also faster. But this should be the last option after exhausting all other treatment options.
FAQ
What are the non-surgical options for joint preservation?
Doctors can help to preserve the functionality of the joint by prescribing steroid injections, with the help of plasma therapy, and through bone marrow transplantation.
Bottom Line
Joint replacement or joint preservation. What’s your option? No matter what your answer is, you have to choose the best center to get these treatments done. The experts will be able to guide you across the process and choose the best option for you, after analyzing the underlying joint condition.