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DMU helps arrange medical care for international patients. How it works
In organizing treatment abroad
We work directly with clinics and doctors
Organizing treatment even in a pandemic
You pay your bill directly to the hospital
Professional translators translate your documents and accompany you on your trip
24 hours per day, seven days a week, 365 days a year
Endoprosthesis is a replacement of a biological joint with an artificial one in part or whole, on order to preserve or restore its functionality. It is now possible to replace any type of a joint: knee, shoulder, hip, elbow, wrist, ankle and finger.
The reasons for endoprosthesis might include joint wear, trauma or disease. A personal prosthetic and a method of implantation are chosen in accordance with a reason for surgery and patients features such as age, physique, comorbidities and physical activity. The majority of surgeries are carried out with minimal invasive technique.
As of today, the most efficient hip endoprosthesis method is considered to be AMIS method. This is a minimal invasive surgery with a 7-8 cm incision, which is almost twice as small as the one required for a traditional surgery. Another method is called ALMIS with an incision made on the side.
The main benefit of the method is reduced damage degree. During the procedure hip muscles are not severed, but merely set aside. Thus, the patient avoids muscle scars, major bleeding, pain and long recovery. Moreover, the risk of prosthetics dislocation is reduced due to the preservation of muscle strength. The surgery is about 1.5 hours long and the patient is usually discharged from the hospital few days after the procedure.
The most important feature of the artificial joint is its durability. The longevity of modern prosthetics is up to 20 years. The exact life span depends on the material and the level of physical activity – the higher the level, the faster a prosthetic wears out.
Modern 5th generation prosthetics are comprised of several types of material:
Doctors recommend getting ready for the surgery 2-3 month in advance, in order to minimize the rehabilitation period and avoid complications. The patients are advised to do regular exercises for a better blood circulation and sticking to the proper diet. Obese patients are recommended to lose weight and patient with the diseases in the acute stage should go into remission first.
A month before surgery, patients are advised to visit a dentists, in order to get a treatment, if any needed, so they would have enough time for recovery. If possible patients should avoid alcohol consume and smoking two weeks before surgery. Patient should also stop taking pain killers a week before surgery and blood thinners – four days before surgery.
Usually a prosthetic replacement is required when it wears out and becomes loose. However, other reasons also might come across, which include:
On average a prosthetic wears out and loosens after 12-15 years, then it has to be replaced. Faulty prosthetics may cause pain and unsteady gait. Doctors recommend to carry out prosthetic diagnostics every one or two years, in order to detect any signs of loosening in advance.
In most cases, revision is more complicated than the first joint replacement, because the bone has been already damaged, so this time the patient might need an osteoplasty. At this stage, it is crucial to find an experienced surgeon.
Children with specific bone diseases are also a subject for endoprosthesis. In this case, surgeons use a special expandable prosthesis. They expand as a child grows. Patients do not even need to undergo other corrective surgeries – a prosthesis is expanded due to the electromagnetic field with a remote control. On average, this procedure must be done 2-3 times per year.
After minimal invasive surgery even on the lower extremities, the patients can get up from the bed within the first 24 hours. Then they undergo a rehabilitation program, that includes various physical and physiotherapeutic methods. It is recommended to attend these programs at a special center for at least a week: the recovery will be quicker and more effective and the specialists will track the healing process.
Today one of the fastest and most effective rehabilitation programs is a “Fast-Track” program that is implemented in the best clinics worldwide. Alongside different exercises and physiotherapeutic procedures it includes special training on rehabilitation machines guided by a specialist.
The costs depends on the joint and on the clinic performing the surgery. At the moment, the safest joint replacements are carried out in Germany where the prices of the surgery, for example, a hip replacement, start from €14.000.
* Contact a DMU manager in order to find out the costs of other services.
DMU is a team of experts in all the healthcare areas. We solve the most complicated issues even of the most exacting customers. We do not have any subcontractors or mediators and we can ensure that each of the steps - from choosing the clinic to air medical services - is performed at the highest level.Our managers will help you arrange the joint replacement surgery, all you need to provide is your documentation.
Read more about us and how we work on our website www.dmu-medical.com.
Leave us a request: your personal manager will contact you within an hour to discuss the details
Submit the necessary documents: to organize an appointment at the clinic, you will need your personal data and medical reports
Wait for a response from the clinic with the appointment of a date: on average, the response takes about 48 hours
Go for treatment: a specialist in the logistics department will accompany you at all stages of the trip
Yes, and the main contraindication is osteomyelitis, purulent synovitis, tuberculosis, thrombophlebitis, psychological disorders, local infections, malignant tumors and 3rd stage obesity.
If the surgery is carried out by an experienced specialist, a quality prosthesis is fixed, and the patient does not have any concurrent conditions, the risk or complications is almost zero. In other cases, the most common problems are disruptions of the healing process or blood-clotting. If the prosthetic joint is of a low quality, not fixed correctly or recovery measures are not taken, the prosthesis might get dislocated. There are rare cases of haemorrhages, purulences, prosthesis rejections. If the patient has concurrent diseases, they might experience cardiovascular or neurological complications.
Patients can do sports but the following kinds of sports are recommended: golf, hiking, swimming, calm dances, nordic walking.
This method is used in most cases, but there are situations when AMIS method cannot be used. Usually it happens when the patient needs extensive osteoplasty.
In professional endoprosthesis clinics the surgery is performed on a special operating table with an accessory for a certain joint fixation. Surgeons might also use robotics or x-ray for a join overview. After an incision is made, a damaged part of a joint and a bone is removed, if it is required. Then a prosthesis fixation follows. Usually minimally invasive surgery lasts 1.5 hours, however, the surgery might take up to 3.5 hours in case of a bigger diseased portion.
Many clinics possess robotics systems, including MAKOplasty system. The system enables surgeons to operate within the accuracy up to 0,1 mm, thus significantly reducing post-operative complications. Robotic system, however, is no guarantee for efficiency and stability of an endoprosthesis. Your doctor is the one who is first of responsible for an outcome of the surgery.
Please avoid falling, lifting heavy weight and active sports. The patients are not allowed to drive vehicles and stay in one position for a long time, thus missing rehabilitation procedure. There are some additional rules for every type of prosthesis.
In Germany joint replacement surgery has already become a routine procedure. The number of hip and knee replacement procedures reaches up to 450 000 surgeries per year. State-of-art equipment combined with highly experienced surgeons in endoprosthesis ensure extremely low post-op complication rate. Germany also has several societies for orthopaedics, that develop new implantation methods and improve the old ones, as well as monitor prosthesis production quality.
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