Joint Health in DFW

If you’re considering replacing those rusty hinges, here’s some new angles on old bones.

When you have hip or knee pain, it can be tough to decide when to walk it off and when to see a doctor. Your symptoms need to be treated when:

• An injury where you see a deformity or hear a popping sound
• Persistent pain that lasts more than a week
• Pain that recurs with specific activities
• Continuous pain and swelling

What Is Osteoarthritis?
Most people will develop this common condition at some point in their lives. Osteoarthritis results when a joint begins to wear out. This damage to the cartilage and bones limits movement and may cause pain. The tendency to develop this condition may run in your family or be caused by an injury you had years ago.

Don’t Just Live with It
Sometimes, treatments for joint pain are as simple as rest, over-the-counter or prescription medications, activity modification, and physical therapy. Occasionally, surgery is required. Joint replacement can restore people to active, functional, and fulfilling lives. After rehabilitation, most patients can return to the activities they enjoyed before their joints became so painful.

Are You a Candidate for Joint Replacement?
When patients experience arthritis, the criteria he uses to determine whether joint replacement is an option may include some basic questions. Does it interfere with your ability to play with your children or grandchildren? Can you go up and down stairs? Are you having trouble with your daily walk? Does your pain wake you up at night? And if a weight-bearing X-ray of the joint shows bone touching bone, a patient may be a good candidate for joint replacement.

Advances in joint replacement
Thirty years ago, a total knee or hip replacement was likely to last just five to ten years. Now, with advancements in metallurgy and plastic development, they can last much longer.

For more information on our Joint Replacement Program, please contact Julie Davis.