Getting Back to Your Best with Minimally Invasive Surgery.
Today we are living longer and fully expect to enjoy a long and active life. Minimally invasive orthopedic surgery is helping to keep us in the game of life, restoring function and range of motion in older athletes, relieving pain for individuals with arthritis or work-related conditions such as carpal tunnel syndrome, and helping anyone recovering from a traumatic accident or injury get back on their feet.
“Orthopedic technology advances in minimally invasive techniques, specialized tools and advanced imaging are helping to reduce and eliminate pain and restore functionality and range of motion to key areas of the body such as hips, knees, hands and shoulder joints,” says Dr. Marshall P. Allegra, M.D., an orthopedic specialist in Hazlet, New Jersey.
In an arthroscopic examination, an orthopedic surgeon makes a small incision in the patient’s skin and then inserts a pencil-sized instrument that contains a small lens and lighting system to magnify and illuminate the structures inside the joint. This enables the surgeon to visualize, diagnose and treat problems inside the joint.
“Partial join replacement has become a refined procedure, with sameday surgery, immediate rehab and quick recovery,” says Dr. Allegra. “Hip arthroscopy has emerged as a specialty in the last five or six years, as well as the ability to resolve soft tissue problems, bone spurs, ACL and other ligament repairs – treatments are now available for these conditions in same day surgical settings.”
Excellent outcomes are being achieved thanks to a full continuum of care supporting same day surgery patients. “Patients may receive a continuous pain block that lasts for two or three days after surgery, home care is available for patients who require it, and physical therapy begins almost immediately,” says Dr. Allegra.
“As you go along the age spectrum, a younger active person may have a soft tissue or ligament injury repaired arthroscopically, and an older person may have partial joint replacement. Either way, they can both be back to their normal routines very quickly,” says. Dr. Allegra. “Thanks to minimally invasive procedures and a supportive care environment, these injuries are not the setbacks they once might have been.”
The benefits of minimally invasive procedures include less blood loss, less post-operative pain, lower risk of infection, less damage to musculature and tissue, and earlier return to normal function, work and recreation. “The
techniques of minimally invasive surgery are ‘technically’ more demanding,” adds Dr. Allegra, “so it’s important to seek out surgeons with exceptional training and experience.”
Dr. Marshall P. Allegra, M.D.