If you have been living with persistent hip or knee pain from arthritis, you may have reached a point where you feel ready for a more permanent solution like surgery. You may have difficulty walking, exercising, sleeping, or doing the activities you enjoy. But what happens when you see a doctor and are told that you do not need a joint replacement surgery?
For some patients, this can be frustrating. If your pain is affecting your everyday life, being told that surgery isn't necessary may leave you wondering, “What am I supposed to do now?”
We know that the pain from knee or hip arthritis is hard to deal with. When choosing a treatment, there is a balance between factors to figure out if and when surgery is right for you:
· When your X-rays, treatment history and medical history show surgery is appropriate.
· When your hip or knee pain and function have become bad enough to impact your day-to-day activities.
Why the caution? Did you know joint replacement is often done too early or performed on patients that should not have received the surgery? Over 400,000 patients a year are told that they are candidates for joint replacement surgery when in fact the surgery is not appropriate or is offered prematurely. This results in thousands of patients feeling unsatisfied with their surgery.
Joint replacement surgery can be a life changing procedure. However, you need to be confident that it is the best treatment for you. Getting a second opinion can help you better understand your pain, the level of arthritis in your hip or knee as well as your treatment options, both non-operative and possibly operative.
Your pain is an important part of the picture but not the only part of the decision. X-rays are also important tools for evaluating the wear from arthritis. Your level of wear determined by regular office X-rays coupled with you level of pain and how it effects your life are all part of the shared decision-making process.
For example two people can have similar levels of wear in X-rays, but their level of pain can be very different. Even when a patient has “end stage” arthritis (bone on bone hip arthritis or bone on bone knee arthritis) where there is no cartilage left, one person may have relatively little pain and remain active, while another may struggle with everyday activities. Sometimes even moderate levels of wear can cause significant pain.
Your symptoms, the degree of wear, pain and how pain effects your life, previous treatments, overall health, and especially your personal goals all matter when determining the right treatment plan.
As we always ask, “What Matters to You?” If your pain is significantly affecting your quality of life, a second opinion can provide another perspective on what may be causing your symptoms and what treatment options are appropriate.
Seeking a second opinion does not guarantee that you will be recommended for joint replacement surgery, but can help you make an informed, shared decision with your providers about your treatment options. Having a second opinion can help you understand if and why surgery may or may not be appropriate for you.
Remember that there may be non-operative treatments that you haven't tried or newer treatment options to reduce your pain and improve function. These knee replacement alternatives and hip replacement alternatives may include guided exercise programs, weight management, medications, special injections, or new approaches like the cryotherapy (cold) treatment.
On the other hand, a second opinion may determine that joint replacement surgery is a reasonable option.
The “correct” treatment is very individualized, personal and based on what matters to you. The decision to proceed with joint replacement surgery is up to you. It is all about the shared decision making process and the choices that are best for you.
The Joint Effort Second Opinion program can give you the opportunity to understand your options, ask questions and make sure your treatment plan aligns with what matters most to you.
· How much does my pain interfere with my life and activities that I would like to do?
· What activities have I stopped doing because of my arthritis pain?
· Have I tried non-operative treatments and how well have they worked?
· What are my goals?
· What are the potential benefits and risks of surgery?
· How can I best prepare for surgery?
Joint Effort Second Opinion simplifies the process of seeking a second opinion. Using X-rays you already have, from the comfort of your home, you can receive a second opinion from Dr. Tony DiGioia, a knee and hip arthritis specialist with more than 30 years of clinical experience and over 15,000 joint replacement surgeries performed. Joint Effort Second Opinion will provide you with an individualized report that you will receive that can be shared with your providers to determine the most appropriate treatment pathway and aid in the shared decision making process.
Beingtold that you don't need a joint replacement doesn't mean you have to simplylive with pain.
JointEffort Second Opinion can help you better understand and confirm yourdiagnosis, explore non-operative treatment options, and determine what makessense for you. Whether the answer is surgery, other non-operative treatment, orsimply a better understanding of what to expect, the goal is to help youmake a confident decision about your care.
Ifyour knee or hip pain from arthritis is affecting your quality of life andyou're unsure about your treatment options, a second opinion is a very helpfulnext step.
Think you know when the right time for ahip or knee replacement is? Test your knowledge with this short quiz!
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