This is another in the ‘Focus on Wellness’ series, columns written by specialists in their fields. Views expressed do not necessarily reflect those of Milestones or of PCA.
By Dr. Richard Rothman
Osteoarthritis debilitates and brings pain to more than 27 million people. The disease entails the breakdown and loss of cartilage in our joints. This cartilage serves as cushion between the bones of joints, and when it wears away, the pain from bone rubbing on bone can be excruciating.
Osteoarthritis can occur from a traumatic injury, but it usually results from wear and tear after years of an active lifestyle. That active lifestyle is put in jeopardy when osteoarthritis strikes.
Osteoarthritis often strikes our knees and hips. When severe osteoarthritis develops and cartilage wears away, you have two choices — to live with the pain or undergo replacement surgery.
Undergoing surgery is never an easy decision, but a new artificial implant can bring about a new sense of hope for arthritis sufferers and allow them to restore an active lifestyle. It’s not uncommon for patients to say, “I wish I wouldn’t have waited so long” to undergo surgery.
Knee replacements
More than 500,000 knee replacements, alone, will be performed in the country this year. As baby boomers continue to remain active while they age, it is projected that 3.5 million people — most because of osteoarthritis — will receive knee implants in 2030.
Fortunately, orthopedic medicine has seen tremendous advancements in technology and procedures in recent years.
Knee replacement surgery and other procedures performed today use smaller incisions. Less invasive techniques entail a smaller incision at the side of the knee, allowing surgeons to work around muscles and tendons without cutting them. The technique is more technically demanding and can sometimes take longer, but patients can experience significant benefits, including less pain and quicker recovery.
Knee implants have been modified to make them easier to maneuver and position in the knee joint. This is especially important during minimally invasive surgery, when surgeons have less room to work in while positioning the implant in place.
In addition, patients have more choices today in the types of material of the implant. Implants are made of ceramic and titanium. Doctors will make recommendations on which material to use, based on different factors from patient to patient.
Hip resurfacing
Hip resurfacing is a new alternative to total joint replacement surgery for male osteoarthritis sufferers under 60.
Instead of replacing the entire joint, hip resurfacing entails replacing only the worn surfaces of the hip joint and preserving as much natural bone as possible. A metal cap is then fitted over the top of the resurfaced ball.
In addition to preserving more bone, hip resurfacing has greater potential for maintaining pre-surgery leg length and enabling more strenuous activities.
Partial knee replacement
Unicompartmental knee replacement surgery, also called partial knee replacement surgery is an alternative to total joint replacement for those with osteoarthritis in their knees. Like hip resurfacing, partial knee replacement preserves more natural bone.
Orthopedic surgeons replace only the arthritic part of the knee — the part that is degenerating. Because less tissue is removed, patients may recover faster and resume an active life more quickly.
You may have had a stroke without knowing it.
A new study concludes that about one older American in 10 has experienced what neurologist Sudha Seshadri, author of the study, calls a “silent brain infarct.” Although probably not severe enough to cause recognizable symptoms, it’s a blockage of a brain artery, reducing your thinking powers just a bit.
It’s different from a transient ischemic attack (TIA), a momentary loss of brain function, Seshadri says, in that it doesn’t cause any symptoms, while a TIA does.
The estimate is part of the long-running Framingham Offspring Study, reported in the online issue of Stroke.
Nothing special needs to be done to reduce the risk of silent stroke, Seshadri notes, other than the usual “modifying risk factors,” such as keeping blood pressure and cholesterol down.
Walking can increase the likelihood of your maintaining your independence by 41 percent, a University of Georgia study has concluded.
“Our study found that walking offers tremendous health benefits that can help older adults stay independent,” writes co-author M. Elaine Cress, of the UGA Institute of Gerontology, in the Journal of Geriatric Physical Therapy.
Those in walking exercise groups were better able to perform their daily tasks, Cress reports, “and had more energy left over for recreational activities.” Disability risk dropped from 66 percent to 25 percent in just four months.
Red wine may be good for you, Grandpa, just in case you were looking for a justification.
A recent study indicates that a key compound in red wine appears to protect against many of the health ravages associated with growing old. It’s called resveratrol, and in animal research, notes Baltimore gerontologist Rafael de Cabo, it appears to have “very strong positive effects on preventing cardiovascular disease, reducing heart inflammation, keeping bone health… and maintaining locomotor and balance activity.”
The study’s authors, De Cabo, of the National Institute on Aging in Baltimore, and David A. Sinclair of Harvard Medical School published their findings in an online issue of Cell Metabolism.
Doing crossword puzzles can help prevent dementia, Australian researchers have concluded after a three-year study.
University of New South Wales scholars found that “lifelong participation in diverse and stimulating mental activities” may offer the best protection against age-related deterioration of the brain’s memory center.
In a report published in the journal PloS One, psychiatrist Michael Valenzuela cited “strong evidence that people who use their brains might have less brain shrinkage.” The researchers noted that this could include doing puzzles, learning a new language, reading or even playing bingo.
The number of emergency department (ED) visits by the elderly is increasing and probably, as the population ages, will continue to increase, according to a report in Annals of Emergency Medicine.
Because older patients have longer ED stays and are more likely to be admitted, researchers from George Washington University warn, “the effects on ED and hospital crowding could be catastrophic.”
“Planning should begin now,” advise Dr. Mary Pat McKay and her colleagues.
New research, funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), indicates that if you have diabetes, your hearing should be checked regularly by a certified healthcare professional.
The study, published online in the Annals of Internal Medicine, suggests that diabetes may damage the nerves and blood vessels in the inner ear, leading to hearing loss.
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