H10 -- March 2007 -- Joint-Saving Knee Surgery

Intro: For many of us, wear and tear arthritis is an inevitable part of aging. Thousands of people have knee pain from it, and many go on to have knee replacements. But for younger patients, doctors at Mayo Clinic have another option. They're using high tech computers to realign knee joints in hopes of preventing the need of a total knee replacement.

"C'MON BUDDY!"

PROTON LOVES THE DOG PARK.

"I NAMED HIM PROTON BECAUSE PROTONS ARE POSITVE."

MYKE'S PRETTY POSITIVE HIMSELF. HE HAD AN OPERATION THAT STOPPED KNEE PAIN CAUSED BY DAMAGED CARTILAGE AND EARLY OSTEOARTHRITIS.

"I'D COME OUT HERE WITH PROTON AND IT WAS ALL I COULD DO TO GET TO A CHAIR JUST TO SIT DOWN AND LET HIM RUN AROUND."

PAIN WITH EVERY STEP. NOT GOOD. MYKE WANTED TO AVOID A KNEE REPLACEMENT BECAUSE THEY CAN WEAR OUT AFTER 10 YEARS OF ACTIVE USE. HE'S JUST 43. SO INSTEAD MYKE HAD WHAT'S CALLED AN OSTEOTOMY.

"AN OSTEOTOMY MEANS ACTUALLY CUTING THE BONE. IT ALLOWS US TO REALIGN THE SHAPE OF THE LEG."

DR. CEDRIC ORTIGUERA SAYS OSTEOTOMIES HAVE BEEN AROUND FOR A LONG TIME. BUT WHAT MAKES THIS OPERATION NEW IS STATE-OF-THE-ART COMPUTER TECHNOLOGY. IT KEEPS TRACK OF THE JOINT IN THREE DIMENSIONS AND HELPS DOCTORS BE MORE EXACT THAN EVER BEFORE.

"THE COMPUTER ASSISTANCE ALLOWS US TO BE VERY PRECISE IN HOW WE REALIGN SOMEONE'S BONE."

AND BEING MORE PRECISE IN THE O.R. YIELDS BETTER RESULTS. DURING SURGERY DR. ORTIGUERA PLACES MARKERS AROUND THE KNEE. THE COMPUTER REGISTERS THESE POINTS AND SHOWS HOW THE KNEE IS MISALIGNED. HE THEN CUTS THE BONE BELOW THE KNEE AND ADJUSTS THE JOINT TO ACHIEVE PROPER ALIGNMENT. PLUS HE CAN ALSO REPAIR CARTILAGE AT THE SAME TIME. THE OPERATION DELAYS AND MAY EVEN PREVENT THE NEED FOR A TOTAL KNEE REPLACEMENT.

"I CAN COME OUT HERE AND WALK ALL OVER THE PLACE WITH PROTON."

AND THAT MAKES MIKE AND PROTON VERY HAPPY.

FOR MEDICAL EDGE, I'M VIVIEN WILLIAMS.

Anchor tag: Mike says he's pretty much pain free and has no limitations. The only difference he notices is that before the operation he was bow-legged, now he's not.

Dr. Ortiguera says computer-assisted technology is also used for total knee replacements. The precision it offers means both operations will last longer, reducing the need for future operations.. For more information, log onto our Website at ...

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