Surgical options for arthritis pain

Living with arthritis pain can be an exceptionally traumatic and emotionally draining process indeed, and many people who suffer from arthritis pain have lamented that the pain and stiffness that they need to contend with has a very detrimental effect on their quality of life. They no longer go out or socialise with friends and family, ever fearful that the pain will just be too much for them to bear. In many cases, people who suffer from arthitis pain have allowed the fear of the pain exceed the actual pain itself, and so as a result of this they lead sedentary lifestyles, with limited enjoyment, even less activity, and a general apathy towards engaging in sports and other activities.

In short, the arthritis pain becomes the be all and end all for the life of its victims.

For some people,  they are unable to control the pain and symptoms of the disease by conservative methods alone such as exercise, range of motion activities, heat therapy and painkillers. In such cases, surgical intervention maybe required, although given the invasive nature of these procedures, it is important that the patient carefully weighs up their options and consults their physician before making any sort of final decision.

Specifically, for those of us who have arthritis pain in the ankle,  there is an even greater need to be cautious about the potential side effects that can arise from the surgery and the reason for this is that the surgical options for arthritis pain of the ankle joint are limited, riddled with potential complications and woefully lacking in precision.

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What are the options for arthritis pain of the ankle?

Ankle arthodesis/fusion

This has been the traditional method of dealing with arthritis pain of the ankle, and it will invariably involve the talus of the ankle being removed from the foot, in order to allow the foot and leg bones to fuse together.  The problem with this surgical option is that the foot is permanently stiff and therefore is utterly incapable of flexing or moving at all. In addition, there is also the very high probability that the patient will acquire and contract additional arthritis pain further down the line.