What is outpatient joint replacement?
In the past, joint replacement surgeries required a hospital stay, sometimes as long as a week. However, as techniques have advanced, these surgeries have become less invasive and more personalized to each patient.
Now certain patients can have an outpatient joint replacement. This means that patients can undergo hip, knee, or shoulder replacement surgery and return home on the same day. They don’t need to spend any time in the hospital and can heal within the comfort and quiet of their home.
How is outpatient joint replacement possible?
New surgical approaches and technologies make outpatient joint replacement possible.
For hip replacement, the anterior approach allows surgeons to reach the hip joint through the front of the hip, instead of the back. Instead of cutting through muscle, they’re able to move muscles and tendons aside to reach the joint. By avoiding muscle cuts, this approach speeds healing and reduces pain, making outpatient surgeries possible.
For knee replacement, robotic procedures such as MAKOplasty allow physicians to use smaller incisions and only remove damaged tissue, leaving as much healthy tissue in place as possible. Again, this procedure reduces pain and makes recovery faster than traditional knee replacements.
Shoulder replacements have also gotten less invasive, lowering risks of bleeding, infection, and pain that often kept patients in the hospital. All three types of joint replacements may now be safe to perform on an outpatient basis. The latest pain management and blood conservation techniques enhance the patient’s recovery and often eliminate the need for a hospital stay.
Am I a candidate for outpatient joint replacement?
Outpatient total joint replacements are safe new procedures in properly selected patients. Researchers are studying when these procedures are safe and what patients may benefit most from the surgeries.
Currently, you may be a candidate for an outpatient joint replacement if you:
- Are otherwise healthy and don’t have other health conditions such as diabetes or heart disease
- Are younger than age 70
- Have a body mass index less than 40
- Have a support system ready to help you recover at home
- Non-smoker
- Not taking chronic pain medicine
- Are motivated
- Have early to moderate arthritis in your joint
If you’re interested in outpatient joint replacement, contact Dr. Hodrick’s office today to find out if you qualify.
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