Orthopedic surgeries are the surgeries performed on the muscular and skeletal system of your body. The surgeries include procedures performed on bones, muscles, joints, ligaments and tendons, if any of these parts are injured or due to a specific condition. In some cases, bone pain cases are managed through medicine, but in other cases, a surgery is needed. Some of the most common types of surgeries that orthopedic surgeons perform are given below. Let’s start!

Bone Fracture Repair

Bone fractures are very common to happen. A serious impact on the bone can cause it to break or, in medical terms, to become fractured. Fracture means that there is a line or crack in the bone, which can be seen through a simple x-ray. Fractures are extremely painful, and they need to be taken care of as soon as possible. Fracture repairs are mostly done by pulling the bone and maneuvering it back in place, then casting it to ensure its secure position.

The casting is left on the body for weeks or months even, to let the bone heal naturally and regenerate. The bones in the human body can generate themselves, if kept in a stationary position for some time, which is why casting the fracture is very important, so it doesn’t move around and interrupt the regeneration process.

Joint Replacement

This orthopedic procedure is also very common. Some people, especially old people have joints which are always painful, and they have a difficult time walking or functioning as a normal human being. Weak joints mostly occur in the legs, knees, elbows, etc. These weak joints can be surgically replaced with new ones, which are prosthetics.

One of the most common joint replacement surgeries is knee joint replacement, in which the knee cap is removed, and it is replaced with a prosthetic metal knee cap. This causes the patient to walk properly and without experiencing any pain afterwards.

Soft Tissue Repair

Athletes and people who overdo a lot with their bones and body can sometimes complain of pains in the joints and muscles. Sometimes, a sudden jerk to the bone or muscle can break or tear the ligaments and tendons. Ligaments are the soft tissue which holds bones together, whereas tendons connect the bones with muscles. Since the tissue between bones and muscles are very soft, they can tear very easily. But it is not something irreversible. Soft tissues can be repaired by a surgical process known as soft tissue repair. In this procedure, the soft torn tissues are surgically unified together again.

Spinal Fusion

Sometimes, the vertebral column can be separated due to too much stretching of the spine above its limit. This can cause a lot of pain in the back and lower back region. A surgical process, which involves the unison of the vertebrae is known as spinal fusion. As the name suggests, spinal fusion involves joining of the separated vertebrae back in place.

Unevenly spaced vertebrae can ruin your back posture and it can be extremely painful. Not to mention, separated vertebrae can lead to several nervous injuries, which involves loss of sensation in some parts of your body, tingly sensation in your back and tips of feet and fingers, etc.

Osteotomy

Osteotomy is a type of bone deformity. This condition is very common in small children, whose bones are very soft and liable to deformation. If a bone is deformed, which can be detected by an x-ray or scan, it must be surgically removed, so that the other bones are not affected, and they can grow without any problem. Leaving the deformed bone in the body for too long, can lead to posture deformity later when the child grows up. So, it’s better to remove the bone, when it’s still soft and developing.

Hip Replacement Surgery

The hip joint can become damaged, due to breaking or cartilage or due to severe impact on the femur bone. This can cause a lot of excruciating pain in the hip region and a lot of people can’t even sit because of it. So, hip replacement surgery becomes necessary. In this surgical procedure, orthopedic hip surgeons McLean use prosthetics to mimic the ball and socket joint of the femur bone, because this is the main part that gets damaged in hip injuries.