Thursday 29 December 2011

Improved functioning of joint through knee replacement

Removing of diseased or damaged part of knee joints and replacing them with an artificial part is the procedure of knee replacement. It is also known as knee arthroplasty. The artificial joint that is replaced with the actual body organ is known as prosthesis and most of them are made by combining plastic and metal or ceramic and metal in the latest models. The main purpose of these surgeries is to give relief from the unbearable pain that a damaged knee causes and secondly to improve the functionality of the joint. A person with a healthy knee joint can stand upright and walk miles with any physical pain but a damaged knee hampers the efficiency of the knee and gives rise to immense pain.

Damaging of a knee can be a sudden result of an accident or trauma that might break the bone but usually it is an outcome of osteoarthritis that further needs knee replacement. In this the pain develops gradually and the condition of the joint gets worse with the years passing by. It is very important to understand the disorder and study about the injuries carefully before undergoing any kind of surgery. Knee structure is very complex, and is not like a ball and socket joint the way our hip is. It can move forward and backward, and to use it in other direction we need to move carefully without putting so much stress on the knee and eventually hurting it. Various sports like skiing, weight lifting and tennis which involves excessive leg movement offers you a threat of knee injuries.

A knee joint consists of thighbone (femur) to the lower leg which is a combination of two bones running parallel to each other, tibia and fibula. All three are connected with a kneecap (patella) which is made of cartilage and ligaments and makes the movement of knee joint smooth. They act as a shock absorber and prevent any kind of sudden stress and few muscles called as tendons helps in straightening the knee and also keeps control of the knee alignment. In case of osteoarthritis the cartilage eventually break down letting the surface of the joints rub against each other. The result of this could be pain, redness, swelling, inflammation and gradual hammering of mobility. The pain and inflammation can be control for sometime using physiotherapies and pain killer but that slowly and steadily effects the body and the effect of the medication remain for a short duration. No medicine can help grow the cartilage.

The only solution to this knee trouble lies in knee replacement. Patients can choose from partial or total knee replacement with the guidance of their physician. In partial only one damaged part that is causing the maximum pain is removed and replaced with an artificial bone structure but in case of a total knee transplant the whole knee is replaced with metal and plastic component or prosthesis. The metal alloy is fixed to the bone using polymethylmethacrylate cement, and the surgery is done patient is kept under observation to prevent any kind of infection. The process is followed with exercise and medical care and has proved to be a successful relief from major joint pains. For more details visit www.cmcmohali.com .

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