Orthopaedic Frequently Asked Questions
General
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What is Arthritis?
COMING SOON
Hip
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What materials do you use for hip replacements?
Recently, there have been many cases of hip failure because of the use of metal-on-metal bearings, leading to loosening of the implant and metal poisoning (in particular Co-Cr (Cobalt-Chrome)).
Mr Byrne uses metal on ceramic-on-polyethylene bearings which are anticipated to last 30 years or more and cannot release Co-CR (Cobalt-Chrome) ions into the body track. The use of highly crosslinked Polyethylene has made it almost unheard of to see hip failure purely due to excessive wear.
Knee
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I have heard that a Partial/Half knee Replacement is much better than a Full/Total knee Replacement?
Partial/half knee replacements (also called uni-complementary knee replacements) are often advertised as a much better alternative to total knee replacements because of quicker recovery, less pain, and better results.
Unfortunately, these are only half-truths and for a partial knee to work well, a number of strict conditions apply.
Every knee is made up of three working compartments (medial, lateral and patella), and a Partial Knee can only work if the medial compartment is worn while the other two compartments are pristine and not affected by degeneration either due to wear-and-tear, previous surgery or damage from trauma. The knee cannot have any malalignment, infection or any other form of arthritis (such as rheumatoid, gout, or psoriasis) other than osteoarthritis (OA). If the knee does not fulfil any of these criteria or if the patient is too heavy or too old, excessive wear will damage the rest of the knee, requiring more surgery, which will be more difficult and less successful because of the Partial Knee Replacement.
Shoulder
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What is Arthritis?
COMING SOON
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