Published: October 14, 2008

Educate and Ease the Mind of Patients Through a Live Total Knee Replacement Webcast

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Live Webcast: From Shawnee Mission Medical Center, October 14, 2008 7:00 PM CDT

Shawnee Mission Medical Center (SMMC) will host a Total Knee Replacement (TKR) Live Surgery Webcast on Tuesday, Oct. 14 at 7 PM on http://www.or-live.com/shawneemission/2225. The Webcast will feature Robert Sharpe, MD, of Midwest Orthopaedics, PA, as he surgically reconstructs a patient's knee. Burrel Gaddy, MD, who is also with Midwest Orthopaedics, will serve as the moderator, answering questions live from the audience.

A TKR is a surgical procedure done to replace a damaged knee with a prosthesis, which is an artificial joint typically made up of metal and plastic. Knee replacements may be necessary when knee conditions cause the cartilage to deteriorate to the point when there are no other options to relieve pain. Osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis and knee joint injury typically create the pain that leads to a TKR. The procedure is very common, with more than 300,000 TKR surgeries being performed every year in the United States.

According to Sharpe, patients who undergo a total knee replacement surgery reap a number of benefits following the procedure.

"Once a patient undergoes a total knee replacement surgery, they have nearly a full range of motion in the knee and can walk on their leg almost immediately," he said. "Patients also regain a majority of the activities that they were doing prior to the knee replacement, without the pain they were enduring before."

Through education, both Sharpe and Gaddy hope the TKR Webcast will help patients better understand the procedure and the positive impact most patients report on their lifestyle afterward, which according to Gaddy can be dramatic.

"Patients often come into my office limping, complaining of their limited ability to perform daily activities because the discomfort is so overwhelming," he said. "The difference in the patient's ability to perform daily tasks after the procedure is remarkable."

About Shawnee Mission Medical Center:

Shawnee Mission Medical Center (SMMC) is a 383-bed facility with nearly 20,000 inpatient admissions and more than 195,000 outpatient admissions annually. SMMC has the busiest emergency department in Johnson County, the area's first accredited Chest Pain Emergency Center, a nationally recognized Center for Women's Health and delivers more babies each year than any other hospital in the metropolitan area. SMMC employs more than 2,700 local residents and supports an exceptional staff of 700 physicians representing 50 medical specialties, the largest medical staff in Kansas City. Visit us on the Web at ShawneeMission.org.

View a preview of this program and learn more about Total Knee Replacement.

VNR: Shawnee Mission Medical Center