Arthroplasty

The joint endoprosthesis is a surgery aimed to replace joint components with implants that have an anatomical shape of a healthy joint and allow to move freely. After such surgery, the patient forgets about the pain in the joint and returns to an active life.

It can be claimed with confidence that to the current date, the specialists of Israeli medical centres have achieved a very high level of professionalism in performing joint endoprosthesis replacement. The success is granted due to the three components: highly qualified specialists, advanced technical equipment and a huge selection of implants from the leading manufacturers. With no doubt, the key factor in this case is the professionalism of the doctors.

Herzliya Medical Center has a huge variety of specialists in the field of orthopaedics. Each doctor is a professional in his field; it is his approach that ensures maximum efficiency of treatment. Turning to the clinic, You can be 100% sure that the orthopedist has tremendous experience in cases similar to Yours. For example, Rami Kardosh, the doctor of our clinic, is a specialist in direct access operations for hip joint arthroplasty, he carries out up to 70 operations monthly. As such, for him this is an absolutely routine procedure. Just think, it is more than two operations daily! A famous athlete, multiple Olympic champion in figure skating – Yevgeny Plushenko, underwent a treatment by one of our doctors. Ilya Pekarsky performed a series of complex spinal surgeries, and within a day Eugene could move on his legs without the usual pain. It should be noted that the nominated figure skater, who could undergo treatment anywhere in the world, remains faithful to this Israeli specialist.

In what situations is hip arthroplasty performed? When and to whom? Indications for joint arthroplasty

Like other organs of the human body, the joints are subject to mechanical trauma, infectious and other diseases. At this stage of development of medicine, diseases of the joints can be treated well, but if the disease has gone too far, the joint can be prosthetic. The first prosthetic surgeries were carried out at the end of the 19th century. At that time things did not go so smoothly: doctors tried to select materials for high-quality replacement, which did not always end successfully. Today, for people who have experienced painful sensations in the joints, there is a huge number of effective solutions.

Who is mostly exposed to the diseases of the joints? And, what causes their development?

There are quite a few reasons because which diseases of the joints can develop, and some of them are not that obvious. Most often, diseases of this type affect people who are subject to a high load of the joints. Mainly, professional athletes or people with difficult working conditions. Studies have shown that ailments do not develop due to loads themselves, but due to the fact that overload often affects a joint, that has not completely recovered from previous microtrauma or injury. Elderly people, whose joints are not able to cope with everyday load, are also at risk. The next factor influencing the development of bone joints diseases is, oddly enough, prolonged stress.

People subject to stress provoke the production of certain hormones in the blood, which have a negative impact on the production of hyaluronic acid, the lubricant for the joints. Additionally, stress reduces the capacity of capillaries and provokes the development of the third factor that destroys the bone joints – hypertonus and muscle spasm. The body and the mind form a single system, and negative experiences cause tension in the central nervous system, as a result of which the muscles pinch the joint. When the joint is damaged, it leads to the aggravation of the destruction processes. The third factor of the joints diseases is injuries. Most likely, after a single injury of the bone joint, the consequences will disappear and the joint will be successfully restored. Microtraumas, happening one after another, also put a patient at danger since they can later become chronic. Particular attention should be paid to traumas resulting from car accidents, since the consequences may lead to the development of serious diseases.

To the current date, experts divide the diseases of the joints into two large groups: arthrosis and arthritis. If the disease has developed as a result of inflammatory processes, then we are talking about arthritis, and if it has developed as a result of degenerative processes, then arthrosis is meant.

Arthritis represents a series of diseases that affect the joints. The disease can be major or concomitant with other diseases. It is widely spread around the world and it most often causes significant discomfort for patients. Characteristic manifestations include pain, redness of the skin and impaired joint mobility. Since there is a huge number of varieties of the disease, its diagnosis and further treatment cause particular difficulty. In this case, the best solution is to trust qualified specialists, because the prognosis of the disease is conditionally unfavourable – disability is a frequent outcome.

Osteoarthritis is a disease that occurs as a result of prolonged inflammatory processes that occur in the cartilage of the joints. Clinical manifestations include dysfunctionality of the joints as a result of their deformation, pain. Osteoarthritis is the main cause of disability of the citizens around the world. This is the most common form of joint damage. Susceptibility to the disease rapidly progresses with age, but the first stage can also be observed in the relatively young patients. In total, there are three stages of development of the disease, the result of the third stage includes the deformation and restriction of joint mobility. At this stage of the development of medicine, experts collectively agree that the successful treatment of arthrosis lies in joint endoprosthesis replacement.

VIDEO

Front access for hip prosthetics

Like any other surgical operation, arthroplasty of the joint is carried out in several stages. Despite the routine nature of the operation, at the Herzliya Medical Center, the focus is put on preoperative preparation. The doctor cannot rely on the results of studies conducted in other clinics when his reputation is put at risk. First of all, the specialist should study the history of the disease and draw conclusions from the results of all medical tests. The next stage of the preparation includes the consultation of the patient with the anesthesiologist – this allows determining the most appropriate preparation for anaesthesia, as well as the method of its introduction. The study of X-ray images in two projections and the fluid intake from the joint allow to determine the presence of infection and choose the type of endoprosthesis. Today the specialists can choose between more than 60 main modifications.

There are several main access methods for performing hip arthroplasty: traditional access (posterolateral) and anterior access. With the posterolateral access, the incision is made in the lateral and upper thigh. Today it is applied less frequently.

Anterior access is more frequently used and it has several advantages. The incision is made on the front part of the thigh, between muscles and tissues, which can significantly reduce recovery time, as well as pain after the operation. Further, the advantages of anterior access will be considered in more detail. To date, the most advanced clinics are equipped with special tables that allow installing the endoprosthesis during surgery in order to replace the joint as accurately as possible. The table fixes the patient and makes it possible to adjust the height of the position of the thigh. The second important aspect includes constant monitoring through fluoroscopy. Experts note that the use of these nuances during the operation allows performing an excellent alignment of the implant. The advantages of anterior access for the patient include:

• Shorter incision length (lower recovery time, inconspicuous scar)
• No need to lose weight before the operation (the front of the thigh has a small fat layer).

Dr Rami Kardosh, a specialist in hip and knee joint replacement at the Herzliya Medical Center, is an expert in anterior access surgery for hip arthroplasty. He performs up to 70 such operations per month.

The technique of anterior access for hip prosthetics

With the use of anterior access the recovery time after surgery is reduced and most of the patients can walk without feeling pain 48 hours after the surgery. The entire preoperative preparation, as well as the recovery period, takes no more than 10 working days.

Herzliya Medical Center offers high-quality services, which have already been appreciated by a huge number of people around the world. The exceptional attention to each of our patients begins from the moment of filling in the application or preliminary consultation. We do our best for each of our patients, even if we are talking about simple human support, which sometimes is of a particular importance.

The main advantages of the anterior access carried out with total hip prosthetics include:

• Minimal damage to muscles
• Faster healing time (with other operational approaches, the surgeon has to cut more tissues of the thigh).
  It reduces the pain syndrome and minimizes the rehabilitation period to 1-2 weeks for the full recovery.
• Fewer restrictions during the rehabilitation period. Despite the fact that the rehabilitation period is very individual, this access is characterized by lighter movements in the hip joint. As such, the patient does not need to rebuild his life and change his habits in the postoperative period, as there are no restrictions in movements for medical reasons.
• A small postoperative scar is formed, as a small incision is needed to allow the access.
• Anterior access ensures the stability of the prosthesis immediately after the surgery since this method is characterized by the minimal damage to the tissues and muscles.
• Previously, displacement of the head or dislocation of the prosthesis after total endoprotection was the main postoperative risk. But with the use of anterior access, the doctor can fix the endoprosthesis since the patient lies on his back during the operation.

Allow yourself to get rid of the pain and breathe the joy of every moment of a full life!