What is a Total Joint Replacement Program?
Arthritis can create chronic joint pain, and interrupt your active lifestyle. Once conservative, or nonoperative treatment has failed to alleviate hip pain, patients may benefit from surgical intervention, such as a total joint replacement. For patients with hip arthritis, hip preservation may be another treatment option as well.
Our total joint replacement program can help get patients back to enjoying the activities they love. Over the past decade, our total joint replacement program has been proactive in terms of optimizing our patients' health prior to surgery, which can improve the long-term success of their joint replacement and reduce the risk of readmission or complications. Our program has been identified as Center of Excellence, earning the Joint Commission's Gold Seal of Approval for safety and quality of joint replacement procedures.
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Our orthopedic surgeons see patients at both Barnes-Jewish Hospital and Barnes-Jewish West County Hospital, providing our patients with two convenient options for outstanding care.
Why Choose Us?
Experienced Surgeons
Our surgeons performed over 2600 primary and revision total hip and knee replacements in 2018, which includes a significant number of complex cases. Our practice is ranked as the 5th highest volume practice for primary total hip replacements among academic medical centers in the United States1.
Safety
Our total joint replacement program has earned the Joint Commission's Gold Seal of approval for quality and safety of joint replacement procedures2, and has been recognized by US News and World Report as a "High Performing" program3, which is the highest designation possible.
In addition, Barnes-Jewish Hospital and Barnes-Jewish West County Hospital are among the top five academic medical centers in the United States for a low length of stay following primary total hip and knee replacement surgery4.
Our 30-day readmission rates, measured by how many patients return to the hospital for complications following a primary total hip or knee replacement surgery, are considerably lower when compared to the national average of United States academic medical centers.5
Our program focuses on high-quality patient care that begins weeks, sometimes even months, before a joint replacement procedure takes place. Learn about the steps we take to improve your joint replacement outcome.
Advanced Surgical Techniques
We offer outstanding solutions for joint replacement surgery, including the use of minimally-invasive surgical techniques. Minimally-invasive solutions can allow for faster postoperative recovery, less postoperative pain and a quicker return to an active lifestyle than more traditional techniques. Some of the advanced procedures we offer include:
- Anterior total hip replacement
- Cementless total knee replacement
- Partial knee replacement
- Robot-assisted joint replacement
- Complex primary hip and knee replacement
- Complex revision hip and knee replacement
Robotic Joint Replacement Surgery
WashU Ortho and Barnes-Jewish West County Hospital utilize the latest in joint replacement technology, including robotic-assisted joint replacement. Robotic joint surgery is similar to traditional joint replacements, where a surgeon removes damaged or diseased tissue and replaces it with an implant. The difference is that it is done with the assistance of a robotic arm, which helps surgeons maximize precise cuts and patient outcomes.
Utilization of robotic technology begins well before surgery...with sophisticated surgical planning software. Using advanced imaging, WashU Ortho surgeons visualize a patient's anatomy with a 3D model and create a personalized joint replacement plan. Using that surgical blueprint, the robot allows WashU Ortho surgeons to cut only what is planned and make adjustments in real time, protecting healthy bone.
Robotic technology use is growing across the country, and WashU Ortho proud to be a pioneer in robotic joint replacement. Our subspecialists perform hundreds of these surgeries each year and conduct research on this technology.
Our goal at WashU Ortho is to get patients back to doing what they love, quicker. Using this technology helps us do that for our patients.
Patient Experience
We committed to providing a personalized patient experience, providing each patient with a dedicated team of experts to guide them through their joint replacement journey. Our facilities are recognized for providing patients with top-notch care, with Barnes-Jewish West County Hospital scoring in the top 10 percent nationally for overall quality of care for outpatient surgery by Professional Research Consultants, Inc. (PRC). Hear from some of our current patients on their experience with our total joint replacement program.
National Leadership
Our orthopedic surgeons not only provide exceptional patient care, but they also hold various leadership positions in national societies for their field, and are leading significant research studies, and teaching other healthcare professionals the latest techniques by hosting continuing medical education courses.
As a patient, you are being seen by a surgeon that is working to improve the field of orthopedics by changing the standards of care that are adopted by other orthopedic specialists. Meet our hip and knee orthopedic providers.