Orthopedic surgery may be recommended if a chronic condition or serious injury is not responding to non-surgical methods effectively. Doctors usually consider many factors, including the patient’s medical history, lifestyle, and preferences, when recommending treatment options like surgery.
If your doctor recommends orthopedic surgery, it means you have met the criteria for it based on the severity of your condition or injury and your experience with other treatments that you’ve tried in the past.
Below, we discuss what makes orthopedic surgery so important for the right candidates.
It Can Treat Severely Torn Ligaments or Tendons
It may not be possible for injured ligaments or tendons to heal, especially in the case of severe injuries. If what you have is a severe ligament or tendon injury, particularly in the knee (ACL tear) or shoulder (rotator cuff tear), surgical intervention may be necessary, especially if non-surgical methods like physical therapy and immobilization fail to provide adequate healing or functional recovery.
Surgical repair or reconstruction can successfully restore the stability, strength, and function of the knee or shoulder, and get you back to doing your normal activities again without pain.
It Can Reposition Dislocated Joints
Joint dislocation can be caused by a traumatic injury. In the case of shoulder dislocation, the doctor needs to reduce the dislocation by performing a closed reduction, maneuvering the joint back into place, and providing a sling to the patient for immobilization and healing. However, if the dislocation occurred with other injuries in the body, or a closed reduction does not fix the problem, surgery may be necessary. Surgery can help reduce the risk of recurrent dislocations and restore joint stability and functionality.
It Can Help Properly Heal Fractures
Certain types of fractures need surgery to heal. Open fractures, where the broken bone pierces through the skin, or displaced fractures, where the bones have become misaligned, need surgical intervention to treat the wound and realign the bones and fix them with screws, plates, or rods to allow for proper wound healing. Non-healing fractures may also need surgery to place a bone graft or stabilize the bone to facilitate the healing process. Fractures in weight-bearing joints also require surgery to ensure they heal properly.
Urgent Orthopedic Care in Fairless Hills, PA
If you have an acute orthopedic injury, the urgent care providers at Patient Care Now in Fairless Hills, Pennsylvania, can assess your injury with our on-site X-ray and determine if we can treat it or if it’s more appropriate to refer you to an orthopedic doctor for surgery.
Most acute, non-severe, and non-life-threatening injuries can be treated in our well-equipped urgent care facility. Our doctors have emergency room experience and can give you treatments that are typically only available in the emergency room.
Patient Care Now is open daily and is located at 541 S. Oxford Valley Rd. For any questions, call us today at (267) 202-6433. To let us know you are on your way, you can check in online. We look forward to providing you with timely orthopedic care.
