Wealden Times | WT166 | December 2015 | Interiors supplement inside

Spotlight on joint pain
We take a closer look at the issues
associated with joint pain
Hip Replacement. The multi-team
approach, including the orthopaedic
surgeon, anaesthetist, theatre team,
ward staff and physiotherapist, has
shown excellent results in the delivery
of patient focused care with some
patients being discharged after only
one day in hospital.
Many people ask what causes joint pain and, more importantly,
what you can do about it when you’re suffering, so we asked
Matthew Oliver and Hugh Apthorp, orthopaedic surgeons at
Benenden Hospital, for their views.
Q
What are the main causes
of joint pain?
MO: Joint pain is a common topic
of conversation as many people
suffer, either due to accidents, sports
injuries, or congenital conditions,
or simply through the natural aging
process. The most common areas for
joint pain are in the knees and hips,
especially as you get older, as these
are the load-bearing joints.
Osteoarthritis has been the
predominant diagnosis in 93% of hip
replacement cases recorded over the
last 11 years according to the National
Joint Registry with a 96% rate for
knee replacements during the same
period. Unfortunately it is also a fact
that the UK population, in general, is
getting heavier with obesity being
another cause of joint pain.
Q What treatment options
are there?
MO: Options depend on the diagnosis
but ways of easing the pain include
heat, rest and over the counter
medications as well as acupuncture,
pilates, swimming, physiotherapy or,
as a short-term solution, steroid or
cortisone injections. Weight loss can
be a further option to help ease the
symptoms of painful joints.
But in many cases the answer to
relieving prolonged pain will be
surgery. In 2014 over 90,000 people
had a hip procedure and over 100,000
had a procedure on their knee.
Q What are the surgical
options?
HA: Surgeons will only consider
replacement knee or hip surgery
as a last resort, especially when the
patient is younger, e.g. under 60,
as artificial joints have a limited life
expectancy.
For hips it is generally some part
of the joint wearing out and surgery
will be performed to replace part,
or the inside surface, of the socket,
or both. For knees, however, if the
cartilage has worn down or broken
up completely, and the bones rub
together an artificial replacement
is implanted.
Q Can you tell us more
about the Short Stay Hip
Replacement programme
HA: I developed the short stay
hip replacement programme in
2004 to significantly reduce the
amount of time patients spend in
hospital when undergoing a Total
Q Tell us more about
Benenden as a Centre of
Excellence
MO: Kent residents are fortunate that
they have a Centre of Excellence for
hip and knee surgery at Benenden
Hospital. I’m an expert on the causes
of joint pain and ways of treating it,
and my colleague Hugh Apthorp is
one of the UK’s leading hip
replacement specialists.
With state-of-the-art operating
theatres; en-suite rooms and secondto-none
infection control systems
to keep patients safe from hospital
acquired infections, Benenden
Hospital is the second largest single
site independent provider in the
South East for orthopaedic surgery.
Q How easy is it to get
access to treatment?
Once its established a patient needs
to see a consultant, the patient and/or
GP can choose Benenden Hospital via
the following methods:-
- Private self-paying providing rapid
access to treatment
- Private Medical Insurance providing
rapid access to treatment
- †NHS referral through the NHS
e-referral system
- Benenden Personal Healthcare
membership – providing a
substantial discount on self-paying
fees
For more information
call 01580 242 521 (quote WT)
Or visit us online at
www.benendenhospital.org.uk
†NHS patients will be treated within the
Government set 18 week waiting list, or
sooner if possible.