dgi Wire—July 28, 2014
The meteoric increase in knee replacements over the last decade has been blamed on a wide range of factors. Young patients presenting with serious knee injuries are on the rise to the tune of some 900,000 cases per year just in the U.S., according to the American College of Rheumatology. The trauma they experienced can also often lead to osteoarthritis (OA), a painful disease involving cartilage, tissue, muscles, ligaments, bone and synovial membrane.
Thankfully, new techniques and improved designs are changing this pattern. Geoffrey Westrich, M.D., orthopedist and co-director of Joint Replacement Research at New York City’s Hospital for Special Surgery, says times have changed regarding the treatment of patients with knee and hip arthritis: in the not-so-distant past, most younger patients with advanced arthritis were told to live with the pain or cut back on their activities.
The full story appeared on dgiwire.com.
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