Northeast Ohio's Center for Orthopedics Now Offers Hip Resurfacing, a Bone-Saving Alternative to Hip Replacement Surgery
Now, the Center for Orthopedics in Sheffield Village, Ohio, offers hip resurfacing surgery to active Baby Boomers sidelined by arthritis. William B. Stanfield, MD, performs this state-of-the-art procedure to help men and women get back to the gym, dancing or the sports they love, with more freedom of movement and less chance of dislocation than hip replacement surgery.
Sheffield Village, Ohio (PRWEB) January 29, 2009
For active Baby Boomers sidelined by hip arthritis, Northeast Ohio's Center for Orthopedics now offers hip resurfacing, a new option designed to give patients the pain relief of hip replacement surgery -- without many of the drawbacks.
Few U. S. orthopedic surgeons are trained to perform hip resurfacing surgery. "Hip resurfacing is relatively new in the United States, though it's been done in Europe for more than 10 years," says William B. Stanfield, MD, medical director of The Center for Orthopedics, just west of Cleveland. Dr. Stanfield, a board-certified orthopedic surgeon who specializes in joint replacement and sports medicine, has been performing hip resurfacing surgery since 2007.
"Hip resurfacing reshapes the head of the thighbone or femur and resurfaces it with a cobalt chromium metal cap -- much like capping a tooth," Dr. Stanfield explains. "The femoral head is resurfaced -- preserving most of the bone -- rather than removing and replacing it as in hip replacement surgery.
In hip resurfacing, a metal cup replaces the damaged surface of the hip socket without the use of bone cement for fixation. The resurfaced thighbone is almost identical to the size of the natural bone, resulting in a better fit inside the hip socket than in total hip replacement. This gives patients greater stability and more-natural hip performance.
"Resurfacing is often a good choice for younger patients, as it allows them to have a much more active lifestyle afterwards than hip replacement surgery," Dr. Stanfield explains. "Preserving more of the natural bone is also important if patients need more hip surgery in the future."
Hip replacement surgery has become very popular. In 2006, 482,000 Americans had a total or partial hip replacement, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention -- but it imposes many restrictions on patients' physical movement.
Orthopedic surgeons caution hip replacement patients not to cross their legs, raise their knees to less than a right angle to their torso, or turn their feet excessively inward or outward. Forgetting these restrictions even once can lead to an excruciatingly painful hip dislocation -- and may necessitate further surgery.
"Hip resurfacing isn't for every patient with hip arthritis," Dr. Stanfield advises, "but it can be a wise choice for active patients under age 65 who have good bone quality and suffer from arthritis."
Case in point: fire battalion chief John Yatson, age 51.
"The arthritis pain in my hip was keeping me awake at night," Yatson recalls. "I went for a few months straight where I got only two or three hours of sleep a night. That's when I decided to get something done.
"When my orthopedist looked at the x-ray of my hip, he said I'd be a good candidate for hip resurfacing," says Yatson. After considering his options, he decided to have his hip resurfaced rather than replaced.
"I went in the hospital on a Monday morning, was up on my feet the next day with the aid of a walker, and went home on Thursday afternoon," says Yatson. He participated in a course of physical therapy after surgery to help restore his normal movement.
"Now I'm pain-free," he says. "I have no restrictions -- that's what sold me on hip resurfacing. I'm even jogging a couple of times a week. When I'm ready to get the other hip done, I won't hesitate."
Yatson is very glad he didn't have a total hip replacement. "A guy I know had a total hip replacement, and he dislocated his hip once while playing golf," he recalls. "I think if someone has the option of hip resurfacing as opposed to a total hip replacement, resurfacing is definitely the way to go.
"Now I don't even give a thought to my hip," says Yatson.
For more information about hip resurfacing, visit http://www. center4orthopedics. com/hip_resurfacing or call the Center for Orthopedics at 440.329.2800.
The Center for Orthopedics, part of EMH Regional Healthcare System, offers the most comprehensive bone and joint care in Cleveland's west side, western Cuyahoga County and Lorain County, Ohio. Complete orthopedic care is available from an expert team of five advance-trained, board-certified orthopedic surgeons at offices in Sheffield Village, Oberlin and Westlake, Ohio. Call 440.329.2800 or visit http://www. center4orthopedics. com.
###
