For people suffering from severe hip or knee pain, routine tasks of daily living may become unbearable. But thanks to advances in musculoskeletal health, there is new hope that they can return to a pain-free life filled with purpose.

“The first step in addressing hip or knee pain is to make an appointment with your primary care provider or orthopedic surgeon, says Christopher M. Farrell, MD, of Atlantic General Orthopedic Surgery. “Even if one has severe arthritis, the first line treatment is almost always some form of non-operative care, such as weight loss, exercise, medications, injections or bracing. For patients with severe pain and advanced arthritis who do not improve with these nonsurgical measures, surgery may be indicated in the form of a hip or knee replacement. Fortunately, with the advent of the modern total hip and knee replacement, millions of people have had substantial relief of pain and improvement in mobility.”

Dr. Farrell is a subspecialist in hip and knee replacement with more than 20 years of extensive experience. He notes that there have been many advancements in the field of total hip and knee replacement surgery. Some of the most notable include better techniques to ease pain after surgery while reducing the use of opioid medications and early mobilization of patients with discharge often on the same day of surgery.

“As orthopedic surgeons we have a great impact on the overall health of our patients. It brings me great satisfaction to get to know a patient and help them through their musculoskeletal care, “Dr. Farrell said. “We are often able to dramatically improve a patient’s pain and restore their mobility.