Anaesthesia for joint replacement surgery

Byrne, Mike; Fischer, Barrie

doi:10.1016/j.mpaic.2008.11.009

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Volume 10, Issue 1 , Pages 10-13, January 2009

Anaesthesia for joint replacement surgery

Mike Byrne, BMBS, BmedSci, FRCA, is a Specialist Registrar in Anaesthesia at the Alexandra Hospital, Redditch, UK. He qualified from Nottingham University and trained in anaesthesia in Derby and the West Midlands, UK. His main interests are regional anaesthesia, teaching and management of the difficult airway. Conflicts of interests: none declared

Barrie Fischer, FRCA, is Consultant Anaesthetist at the Worcestershire Acute Hospitals Trust (Alexandra Hospital, Redditch, UK). He qualified from Bristol University and trained in Cornwall, Cambridge and Cardiff, UK. His research and teaching interests are the role of regional anaesthesia in surgery and acute pain medicine. Conflicts of interests: none declared

Abstract

Joint arthroplasty is now a routine, elective, surgical procedure. The age group and associated co-morbid conditions of the patients who most commonly undergo these major surgical procedures provide a number of anaesthetic challenges to manage. Hip, knee, shoulder and elbow replacements each have specific requirements, but there is considerable scope for developing a common patient care pathway, from preoperative assessment clinic through to postoperative pain management for all patients undergoing joint replacement surgery.

Keywords: arthroplasty, elbow, general anaesthesia, hip, knee, regional anaesthesia, shoulder