Arthritis surgery is quite often used to treat rheumatoid arthritis when most other treatments have failed to relieve symptoms or bring back some normality in life for patients. Quite often the joints concerned are so deformed, so damaged and so immobile that they are no longer responding to regular physical therapy and medicines. One such surgery that many people are familiar with is hip replacement, but the reality is that this can be done for any joint in the human body. The overall success of the surgery really depends on the joint being replaced and the ability of the person to heal and adapt to the fake joint.
The main surgery types include:
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Hand and finger surgeries
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Arthroscopy or the removal of inflamed tissues and debris from the joint
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Synovectomy or the removal of inflamed tissues within the joint only
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Arthroplasty or the replacement of all or part of a joint in the knees or hips
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Cervical spinal fusion or the surgical treatment of nerve issues and advanced and severe types of neck pains
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Metatarsal head resection or the removal of deformed types of bones within your feet
Before you have surgery, there are many things to consider. Though surgery can restore your movement close to normal if you have only one or maybe two joints affected by osteoarthritis, but with people suffering rheumatoid arthritis, the results are far from the same. Most people will have many smaller joints involved, including ones in different parts of the body, so surgery is next to being impossibility. Replacement of joints can reduce or eliminate most joint pain, restoring sufficient mobility to let your live from day to day, but usually never gets the joint close to being completely normal. However, the best procedure in relation to rheumatoid arthritis is the carpal tunnel release resection which can be done in the knee, hip, foot or wrist.
Of course there are some medical risks that you take when having arthritis surgery. These include the potential of heart attacks, strokes, venous thromoembolisms, pneumonia, confusion increases and urinary tract infections. Other problems can occur during surgery with accidental shortenings, dislocations, instability of the joints, motion range complete loss, bone fractures, damaged nerves and blood vessel damage. Other risks include deep and superficial infections, on-going pain, weakness and indolent type infections. Over the long-term, you might experience component loosening, bonding break down and general wear and tear.
