assessing symptoms

moving me forward™

Your movement may be limited, but your options don't have to be. See how other patients conquered their pain and get started on your own journey to recovery.

Mike "Coach K" Krzyzewski
Inspirational college coach and DePuy joint recipient.

watch a pep-talk from Coach Kread Coach K's story

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"It's not worth living with pain."

http://prod.depuy.edgesuite.net/patients/media/depuy_intro.mp4
http://prod.depuy.edgesuite.net/patients/media/depuy_intro.mp4
"It's not worth living with pain."

read Coach K's story

"Hi, I'm Mike Krzyzewski, coach of Duke University's Men's Basketball team. If you could take a journey to move better, live better, why wouldn't you? I did when I had joint replacement surgery.

"I'm here to tell you that you have two opponents. Pain and lack of mobility. Pain can get you down every day. Lack of mobility can lead to decreased speed and loss of endurance. With speed and endurance loss, you don't stay competitive and you spend energy just trying to catch up. But you've got to fight your opponents to stay in the game.

"I know it isn't always easy. There was a part of me that thought of stopping, giving up coaching altogether. I would never have won two Olympic team medals and four NCAA Championships if I hadn't had my surgeries.

"Now, I don't have to overcompensate for injury and pain. I'm more active than before, I have relief from pain and I'm even quicker on my feet. People say I look better now. Do you want your life back the way it should be? You have two choices, a continued downward spiral or take action.

"So don't let the injury win. You don't need to live in pain. That's why I want to encourage you to empower yourself. Get educated, develop a personal treatment plan with your doctor, build a team of support and commit to reclaiming your life. Remember, this is a major event in your life—treat it as such. What you put into it will multiply for you at the end of the journey."
 

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PainPainAn unpleasant sensation associated with actual or potential tissue damage, and mediated by specific nerve fibe... is the main problem with osteoarthritisosteoarthritisArthritis characterized by erosion of articular cartilage, either primary or secondary to trauma or other cond... of any jointjointThe junction or articulation of two or more bones that permits varying degrees of motion between the bones.. At first, the ankle jointjointThe junction between the ends of two adjacent bones. pain occurs only related to activity. Once the activity gets underway there is not usually much pain, but after resting for several minutes the ankle pain and stiffness increase. Later, when the condition worsens, pain may be present even at rest. The pain may interfere with sleep. There may be a swelling around the ankle joint and it may fill with fluid and feel tight, especially following increased activity. When all the articular cartilagearticular cartilageA resilient tissue that covers the surface of bones where they meet in a joint. The cells of articular cartila... is worn off the joint surface there may be a squeaking sound when the ankle joint moves. Doctors refer to this sound as crepitus. OsteoarthritisOsteoarthritisArthritis characterized by erosion of articular cartilage, more common in older people. will eventually affect the motion of the ankle joint and it will become stiff and lose the ability to move.

Arthritic ankle

Certain motions can become painful, and it may become difficult to trust the ankle joint to hold your weight in certain positions. The body has a pain reflexreflexAn involuntary reaction in response to a stimulus applied to the periphery and transmitted to the nervous cent... to ensure that, when a joint is put into a position that causes pain, the muscles around the joint may stop working without warning. This reflex can lead to falls when arthritis affects the leg joints. When osteoarthritisosteoarthritisArthritis typically with onset during middle or old age that is characterized by degenerative (gradual deterio... has reached a very severe stage, the boneboneThe hard tissue that provides structural support to the body. It is primarily composed of hydroxyapatite cryst... under the articular cartilagearticular cartilageCartilage that covers the articular surfaces of bones. may become worn away. This can lead to increasing deformities around the ankle joint. In the final stages, the alignment of the joints can begin to form odd angles where they meet to form the joint.

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May 15 2012 - 19:17:49