Elderly Patients Saw Improved Balance With Knee Surgery
By Donna Parker • May 20th, 2010 • Category: Health News, Joint Health
For elderly people who are suffering from extreme discomfort in their knees, replacement surgery may be the most beneficial option.
According to a study presented at the 2010 Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS), patients who had total knee replacement surgery saw a significant improvement in their dynamic balance.
One of the main problems with severe osteoarthritis is an impaired balance and an increased tendency to fall, these problems were fixed with the help of the surgical procedure.
The purpose of the study was to determine if the surgery was effective in fixing a patient’s equilibrium, as falls are one of the leading causes of injuries in elderly individuals.
"Balance is critical to the elderly, especially those with knee problems. This study reinforced our hypothesis about how an osteoarthritic patient’s function is compromised not only due to pain, but also by balance," said Leonid Kandel, M.D., the study’s author and orthopaedic surgeon.
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