The shoulder is a complex joint consisting of a number of bones, ball, socket, and cartilage. For people suffering from arthritis of the shoulder joint, a total replacement of the shoulder joint is often a successful procedure. It significantly improves pain and range of motion. However, in case the patient is suffering from a special type of arthritis of the joint known as  cuff tear arthropathy , a total shoulder replacement often does not produce the desired result. These people suffer from large rotator cuff tear as well as arthritis. For such patients, a reverse shoulder arthroplasty often show better results. 

Reverse Shoulder Arthroplasty 

In traditional total shoulder replacement, the device put into the joint consists of a plastic cup fitted into the glenoid bone, also known as the socket, and a metal ball attached to the top of the humerus, the upper arm bone. In a way, it mimics the configuration of the original shoulder joint. However, in case of reverse shoulder arthroplasty, the positions of the metal ball and the socket are interchanged. The plastic cup is attached to the humeral head whereas the metal ball is attached to the glenoid bone. 

Benefits of the Procedure 

A reverse shoulder arthroplasty works better for patients who have a large rotator cuff tear along with arthritis. There are a number of rotator cuff muscles in the shoulder and they help to hold the arm in position as well as provide power to the arm during extreme movements. In case of people with large rotator cuff tear and arthropathy, the upper arm has to rely on different muscles for movement because the rotator cuff muscles don t function. Hence, the arm has to depend on other muscles such as the deltoid muscles, to position and power the arm. This is why a reverse arthroplasty is carried out.

Who Can Undergo This Surgery?

Every patient with cuff tear arthropathy is not a candidate for reverse shoulder arthroplasty. Surgeons recommend this surgery when the patient is suffering from: 

  A total tear of the rotator cuff which cannot be repaired 

  A special type of shoulder arthritis known as cuff tear arthropathy 

  An unsuccessful shoulder replacement surgery 

  Extreme shoulder pain along with difficulty in lifting the arm over the head or away from the body 

  A complex type of fracture in shoulder joint 

  A chronic dislocation of the shoulder 

  A tumor in shoulder joint 

Doctors can also suggest this procedure if the patient had previously tried other remedial measures such as medications, rest, physical therapy, injections, etc., but was not successful in alleviating the pain and improving the range of motion of the shoulder. 

Conclusion 

There are some medications that you need to stop before the surgery since they may cause excessive bleeding after the surgery. Some of these medicines are blood-thinning medicines and Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medicines.

Revision Replacement - What Should You Know?

Bones are similar to a porous framework which is filled with minerals that make it hard and strong. With age, there is gradual degradation and the mineralized portion is lost, thereby leading to thinning of the bone. The word osteoporosis literally translates to porous bones, which is due to the gradual demineralisation. In addition to the natural ageing process, there are other diseases that can accelerate the demineralization process.

Women are more prone to demineralisation, and after the age of 40, they should take extra precaution to slow down the onset of the condition. The following are some ways to improve bone health and halt osteoporosis in the long run-

Diet: Ensure that your diet has sufficient amounts of vitamin D and calcium. Though calcium is the essential mineral for bone formation, vitamin D is required for the absorption of calcium, and therefore both these elements play a vital role in maintaining the quality of the bones in our body. Most people require about 1,000 mg of calcium and about 500 units of vitamin D for optimal bone health. This requirement goes up slightly in postmenopausal women.

Sun Exposure: In most people, exposure to the sun allows the body to make vitamin D, but careful sun protection prevents this from happening. Also, with age, the body s ability to form intrinsic vitamin D also declines. The body, therefore, relies on supplements. Most dairy products are good sources of calcium. In addition, spinach, salmon, turnips, and broccoli are some calcium-rich foods. Supplements of calcium carbonate or calcium citrate can be taken if your diet is lacking in calcium. Vitamin D also should be included in the supplementation. The treatment for osteoporosis is incomplete without these two supplements.

Exercise With Weights: The constructive tension that exercise puts on the body helps in bone building, whatever the age may be, which prevents the onset of osteoporosis. Any exercise which improves muscle mass strengthens the bones, and puts stress on the bones is advisable. Since the fractured area due to osteoporosis mainly includes the spine, lower back exercises, yoga, tai chi, and abdominal exercises all work wonders. Pick any of these and do them for 30 minutes three times a week.

Quit Smoking: Continuing to smoke while taking osteoporosis medications is completely useless. Nicotine negates all the effects which defeat the purpose of taking the medication and is as good as taking no medication at all. So if you want the bone thinning to stop, stop smoking.

Alcohol Consumption: While a drink or two per week is permissible, more than this can harm the bones significantly.

Constant Health Watch: Talk to your doctor about how other routine medications (if any) can affect your bone health. Also, identify how frequently you should check your bone mineral density and stick to the schedule.

Bone health and osteoporosis can be managed with some conscious efforts.

Bone Health And Osteoporosis - Know More About Them!

We have 207 bones in the body and breaking of any one of them can be extremely painful. Broken bones are called fractures and are most often a result of accidents. The risk of breaking a bone depends largely on your age and fractures are most commonly suffered by children and elderly people. There are many types of fractures. The most important amongst these are:

Complete or incomplete fractures: This refers to the way a bone breaks. A complete fracture involves the breaking of a bone into two or more separate pieces while in an incomplete fracture, the bone does not break all the way through and may only be cracked.
Compound fractures: Compound fractures are also known as open fractures. This refers to fractures where the bone tears through the skin.
Simple fractures: Fractures where the bone does not tear through the skin are known as simple fractures. This can be further categorized as greenstick fractures, transverse fractures, oblique fractures and impacted fractures.
Severe pain is one of the most common symptoms of a fracture. Other symptoms include swelling or bruising over the bone area, loss of function and deformity. Any form of a fracture needs medical attention. In most cases, using a splint to reset and support the broken bones can help heal them. This process can be surgical or non-surgical depending on the extent of the fracture. In some cases a pin or metal plate may need to be implanted along with the bone to give them support while they heal.

Fractures can be easily prevented. In your home look out for things you could trip over or bang into. Keep all stairways clear of obstructions and do not use them when wet. Advise your children not to run in the house as tiles are slippery and they could fall and hurt themselves this way.

Follow general safety precautions like wearing a seatbelt while driving or wearing a helmet while riding a bike or bicycle. This can significantly reduce your chances of breaking a bone if caught in an automobile accident. 

The weaker your bones, the easier they are to break. Eat food rich in calcium and vitamin D to build stronger bones. Milk and other dairy products are rich in calcium while the best way to get vitamin D is by exposing yourself to the early morning sunlight.

If you suffer from osteoporosis, exercise regularly to improve your balance and increase the strength of your bones and muscles. Your doctor may also prescribe medication for the same.

Fractures - How They Can Be Prevented?

Spondylolisthesis refers to the condition which affects your spinal bones or lower vertebrae. Due to this condition one of the lower vertebrae overlaps the bone directly beneath it. Although a painful condition, it can certainly be treated with both surgical and therapeutic methods.

People with spondylolisthesis often find it difficult to perform routine activities. They usually encounter symptoms such as- persistent pain in the pelvic region, lower back; stiffness in the legs, hamstrings and hip muscles.

What causes spondylolisthesis?
The causes of spondylolisthesis can vary with lifestyle, heredity and age. Children may develop this condition due to an injury or birth defect. Nevertheless, people belonging to all age groups are susceptible to spondylolisthesis if the condition is genetic.

Over exercise or strenuous physical activities can cause spondylolisthesis because over stretching and carrying heavy weight or strain puts too much stress on the lower back.

Participating in sports like football, gymnastics, weightlifting are likely to trigger spondylolisthesis.

Spondylolisthesis can also be triggered due to sondylolysis. The vertebrae safeguard the spinal cord and work with tendons, ligaments, joints and muscles to provide flexibility, structure and support to the neck. Any sort of damage or wear and tear in the protective cartilage and bones in the neck can lead to cervical spondylosis, which in turn leads to spondylolisthesis.

What is the treatment for spondylolisthesis?
Treatment of spondylolisthesis depends on the severity of the pain. While non-surgical methods help ease the pain, a surgery is recommended when the bone has slipped to such an extent that your spine doesn t respond to medications.

Non-surgical treatment includes the following-

Taking anti-inflammatory drugs like ibuprofen to ease pain.
Practicing a few physiotherapy exercises to reduce lower back pain.
Use of minimally invasive Epidural Steroid Injections (EPIs) to get relief from lower back pain and pelvic pain caused by inflamed spinal nerves. When over-the-counter medications fail to treat tSpondylolysthesishe condition or ease the symptoms, then a surgery is inevitable.
Discectomy- It is a surgical procedure that makes small incisions to remove a part of the damaged disc to relieve pressure from the surrounding spinal cord or nerve root.
Laminotomy- This refers to a minimally invasive procedure that removes a part of the lamina which is the upper surface of the vertebra. This process is used to create more space within the spinal canal.
Foraminotomy- With this method excess bone tissues are removed so that they don t make the foramen narrow and compress the nerve root. Removing these extra tissues reduce back pain and ease symptoms triggered by nerve compression.
Medical attention is crucial for countering symptoms of spondylolisthesis. Although this condition may not seem life-threatening, if left untreated, it can lead to chronic, persistent pain and permanent nerve damage.

In case you have a concern or query you can always consult an expert & get answers to your questions!

Spondylolysthesis - A Condition Which Affects Your Spinal Bones!

Majority of bone tumours are benign, meaning they are localised and do not spread. Since benign tumours do not metastasize, they are not forms of cancer. Despite not being malignant, the severity of their presence should not be ignored as they may cause a lot of pain and lead to other problems such as damaged bones and fractures.

Benign Bone Tumors

Osteochondromas: These form over 40 per cent of all benign bone tumours. They are mostly found in children and teenagers. Osteochondroma is a growth abnormality and they are found in the growing ends of long bones. An osteochondroma might grow separately or might be accompanied by other similar tumours.
Osteoclastomas: They are also called giant cell tumours of the bone. They are common and are found in the epiphysis of long bones and around the knee.
Osteoid Osteoma: These grow mostly in adolescents and very rarely in adults above 50. They primarily grow in the legs but they might also be found in other bones in the body.
Enchondroma: It is a bone tumour that starts in the cartilage. It is mostly found in the cartilage of the inner lining of bones. Small long bones of the feet and the hands are affected the most. Teenagers get more affected than other age group.
Osteoblastoma: These are slow growing tumours that take about two years to get diagnosed. An osteoblastoma makes the surrounding bones weaker as they dissolve them and make them more susceptible to fracture caused by small injuries. Men are twice as more likely to be affected by an osteoblastoma than women. Surgery is essential in all cases of osteoblastoma as they destroy healthy functional bone and grow in size with time.
In rare cases, these have also known to become malignant over time, despite their benign nature. It affects people under 30 mostly.

Malignant Bone Tumours

Osteosarcoma: It affects the hip, knees and shoulders of mostly children and teenagers. It is also referred to as osteogenic sarcoma.
Ewing Sarcoma Family of Tumours: These generate from medullary cavities and can also grow in blood vessels and adipose tissues. It primarily affects children and teenagers.
Chondrosarcoma: It usually affects the hips, pelvis and shoulders of middle aged people.

5 Most Common Types Of Benign Tumours!

Bone loss is a silent condition that occurs over the years as you age. It is a condition when the bones become weak and fragile. Many people may not even know that that they are suffering bone loss until it leads to serious conditions such as Osteoporosis. Bone loss resulting in osteoporosis is more in women than men. It is estimated that one of every three women above 50 years suffers from osteoporosis related fracture.

What causes bone loss?
Bones are made of minerals, calcium, and phosphate. Bones are being constantly destroyed and refoemed within the body. As long as your body balances the process, your bones stay strong and healthy. However when the bone decay out grows the bone formation process, bone loss and a host of other problems occur. Some of the common causes bone loss are:

With growing age, the body starts to reabsorb phosphate and calcium instead of keeping it in the bones. This makes the bones weak. When the process continues for a long time, it leads to osteoporosis.
If your diet doesnot contain high calcium foods, then your bones donot get enough calcium.
Smoking and drinking can make your bones weak.
Medical conditions like rheumatoid arthritis, chronic kidney disease can cause bone loss.
Sometimes medicines can also result in bone loss.
What are the symptoms of bone loss?

Receding gums: Our teeth are connected to the jaw bone and if the jaw starts losing bone then it causes receding of gums. Loss of jaw bone is linked to lower bone mineral density.
Decreased grip strength: Hand grips strength decreases due to low bone density.
Weak and brittle fingernails: You may find your fingernails have become weak and brittle.
Cramps,muscle pain, and joint ache: Pain in muscles and joints are an important indicator of vitamin D deficiency, which is a vital component for healthy bones. Cramps in legs and foot at night are an indicator of deficiency of potassium and calcium in the bones.
Height loss: This is a common problem that comes with age. But there are other factors that lead to height loss such as poor posture and fractured vertebra. Poor posture can cause bone loss.
Overall low fitness: If you notice that your overall fitness has declined which includes your balance, muscle strength then you may be suffering from bone loss.
Can homeopathy treat osteoporosis?
Homeopathy has the most effective and holistic approach to treat osteoporosis. Homeopathy doesn t intend to cure bone loss, instead, it tries to treat the underlying health condition that leads to osteoporosis. Some of the important homeopathy remedies are:

Calcaria Phos: It is a very effective remedy for osteoporosis It helps in increasing the absorption of calcium from the food. It is a bone builder and creates new cells.
Calcaria Iod: This is a great remedy to treat loss of bones as well as loss of muscles and fat.
Alendronate: Alendronate is given to patients suffering from osteoporosis which is caused by steroid treatment. It reduces the release of calcium from the bones to the blood.
Calcitonin - Salmon: Calcitonin-Salmon is a man-made hormone used to treat osteoporosis.

Bone Loss - Can Homeopathy Help Treating it

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