Arthritis and Surgery
Arthritis and Surgery
What You Should Know Before Going Into the Operating Room
Arthritis is a condition that largely affects the joints of your body.
There are many different types of arthritis and a number of diseases, such as lupus, can cause arthritic
reactions. Some of the different kinds of arthritis can affect your life so drastically that you and your doctor feel the need
for surgery.
Surgery can be very helpful in reliving pain and stress on your joints, but there are a number of risks as
well. To reduce the risk and have a better peace of mind when going into surgery, ask your doctor and surgeon a number of
questions.
You can have a much better chance of successful recovery from surgery if you are calm going into the
procedure.
First, learn all you can about the surgeon that will be operating on you. What are his credentials? How many
times has he successfully preformed this operation in the past? Who will be on his team in the operating room? If possible, meet
with your surgeon before hand.
Remember, the things that happen to your body are your choices, so if you feel uncomfortable with a surgeon,
you do not have to go through with the procedure or you can request a different doctor.
When you meet with your surgeon, have him walk you through the procedure exactly as it will be done in the
operating room. Although you probably will not be awake for the surgery, it is helpful to understand exactly what will happen in
every step of the operation.
If there are things you don’t understand, your doctor should be willing to re-explain the procedure. Again, it
is your body, so you have the right to understand what the doctors will be doing and why.
Also ask about alternative options. What will happen if you decide not to go through with the operation? Are there other
treatment options? Understand every choice so that you can be sure that surgery is the right decision for you.
You probably also want to know about the anticipated outcome of the procedure. For example, it is helpful to
learn how your body will feel immediately after surgery. What is the recovery time for most patients? How will you continue to
treat the arthritis after surgery? Will you need surgery again at a later time?
Lastly, take care of your finances. Insurance covers most kinds of arthritic surgery for most people, but be
sure to read the fine print of your health insurance agreement operations are expensive and it is difficult to cope with large
medical bills as you are recovering.
Also ask your doctor if all parts of your treatment are covered by insurance. Sometimes certain things, like
anesthesiology (which can be extremely expensive), are not covered and a large bill surprises you.
Overall, it is simply important to be comfortable before you enter the operating room. By having a calm and
positive outlook, you have a better chance of surviving surgery as well as more quickly recovering afterwards.
Surgery is a good choice for some types of arthritis, so ask many questions to see if it is right for
you.
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