Total Knee Replacement
Dr. Sidney Martin and patient Sandra Hodges
Hurley Medical Center, Flint, MI

Aging comes with complications. For many women that may be in the form of arthritis and it can have a major impact with their day-to-day lives. In some cases surgery is turned to in order to restore their quality of life. Dr. Sidney Martin is an orthopedic surgeon with OrthoMichigan, http://orthomichigan.com/. He stresses this with his patients when deciding whether or not surgery makes sense for them.

“I tell patients that when they are unable to do the things that they want to do and their quality of life is suffering, it may be time for surgery,” Dr. Martin explains as he is prepping for a total knee replacement.

Dr. Martin has been the recipient of two new knees himself so he knows what he talking about. With the advancements in medical technology an individual can receive a new knee and be able to walk out of the hospital within few days. We had the opportunity to film with Dr. Martin performing a total knee replacement on Sandy Hodges, a retired middle school principal. In addition to keeping up with prepubescent students, Sandy lived a very active lifestyle. She loved playing softball, rugby and biking as well as other activities before her knees began to fail her. She had a partial replacement on her left knee a few years ago and now her right side was impacting her life so much she opted for a total replacement.

“I have a new mountain bike that just hangs in the garage. I haven’t been able to ride it yet. My goal that I have set for myself is to be able to get on it in 2014,” Sandy told us a week before her procedure when we visited her in her home.

The knee that Dr. Martin would use for Sandy was a Biomet product. With their Signature system, he would be able to provide a custom fitting replacement joint with fewer tools. Here is a link to their website and a nice video demonstrating how there system works. http://www.biomet.com/mySignatureSolution/

The surgery lasted nearly an hour and had no complications. Dr. Martin explained along the way what he was doing and how arthritis can impact individuals as they begin to lose the flexibility of their joints. He even demonstrated the difference in sound between healthy bone, cartilage and a bone with arthritis.