Dr. Jeffrey R. Carlson

There a several types of surgeries to place a hip replacement. Depending on the surgical approach to the hip, the amount of muscle that is disrupted and the type of iimplant used, the typical hip replacement should be healed by 3 months. Limping may be a sign of muscular weakness that needs to be addressed.

Gout will cause joint pain, but there are many causes of joint pain. You should be examined by your physician to help in the diagnosis.

Yes, surgery can help with arthritic knee pain. It is not the first option however. Your doctor should evaluate the painful joint to insure the diagnosis is correct, the proceed with treatments from the least invasive up to surgery.

Yes, you should have an X-ray and be evaluated.

Partial and Total joint replacements refer to the amount of the joint that is removed and replaced with the new metal and plastic implants. The usual determining factor is how much of the joint is damaged, which will determine how much of the joint needs to be replaced. In general, you only want to replace the portion of the joint that is not functioning well. The longevity of the implants and the surgical outcomes can be dependent on several factors including the type of implant, the positioning of the implant surgically and the use of the implant after surgery.

Generally boney protrusions are not treated surgically. The best option is to get this lump evaluated to determine it's consistency and make a plan. Therapy programs, injections and mdications may be a better option than surgery.

It is very difficult to determine what a "growth" on the ankle bone is made of without imaging studies. An X-ray, MRI, or CT scan would be very helpful to your doctors to know what the next steps would be. Sometimes these things will need surgery but sometimes just bracing. He needs to be evaluated to determine the nature of the growth.

This sounds like a tendon/muscular pain issue. It may be the adductor or hamstring tendon that attaches to the inner portion of the thigh is too tight to run. When longer strides are used, the tendon may not be able to make the stretch and causes pain. Generally, a physical therapist can help improve this function.

My interest is really in spine surgery.

There are many reasons for pain in the front of the hip but orthopaedically they are usually 1) muscle strain, 2) ligament strain, 3) tears in the hip joint cartilage. Non-orthopaedic issues can also include hernias and ovarian cysts.
If this is a transient issue, than most likely it is a muscle or tendon strain. This is best treated with stretching. You can certainly do this prior to your exercise routine. You may want to see a physical therapist to help with the correct form in stretching.

You may have a condition called "Chondromalacia" of the cartilage between the kneecap and the femur bone. This is similar to the small cracks that you see in fine china dinnerware. These cracks can be seen and very mildly felt with moving your finger tip over the china's surface. These small cracks in the cartilage also cause grinding in the knee as the surface is a little bit rough but not broken. This is not a reason to do a knee surgery, replacement or otherwise. Pain and deformity are the only reasons to do a knee replacement, so as long as you do not have pain, you won't be headed for any surgery.

This is true, but the answer depends on the patient's situation. The anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) is the main stabilizer for the knee joint. The ACL keeps the femur and the tibia aligned which allows the knee to flex and extend. Without the ACL, the femur will slide on the tibia and cause a shearing force across the cartilage. This shear can lead to rapid degeneration of the cartilage and possibly the early need for a knee replacement.
So, if you don't intend to use the knee very much, the ACL will not be used very much and the cartilage will not degrade as quickly. Those that want to participate in athletics will definitely need an ACL. In those patients that already have severe degeneration in the knee cartilage (arthritis), the ACL does not need to be repaired because the patient actually needs a knee replacement.

If the cartilage is now severely degenerated, the knee will need replacement. Pain is the real reason to get a knee replacement.