How Weight Can Affect Surgical Outcomes

The effects of obesity on your health are far reaching. People who are obese are at greater risk of heart disease, some types of cancer, type-2 diabetes, and damage to nearly every organ and system in the body. When surgery is necessary to treat a patient who is overweight, there is even a greater incidence of complications following most surgical procedures. Post-operative complications are almost universally increased for obese patients, for nearly every type of surgical procedure. The only noted exception is eye surgery.

With every pound of weight in your body creating 4-6 pounds of pressure on your knees, it is no surprise that overweight people are more likely to have osteoarthritis (OA) in their knees. Not only are obese patients more likely to need knee and hip replacement surgery, they are also more likely to experience serious complications during recovery and beyond. These include:

·        Increased likelihood of infection

·        Implant loosening or failure

·        Wound healing complications

·        Blood loss

·        Blood clots

·        Dislocation of the replaced joint

Some doctors will not perform arthroplasty, or joint replacement, on patients who are obese due to these and other potential complications. However, even if there is no weight loss or lifestyle change, obese patients do overwhelmingly recover mobility following joint replacement surgery. Increased healing time, potential failure of the prosthesis, the necessity to have revision surgery at a later time are all drawbacks for obese patients having total joint replacement.

Losing weight prior to having surgery has a significant impact on outcomes. Even a small amount of weight loss can have an effect. And unless your surgery is an emergency, you often have a fair amount of time to attempt a weight loss routine before your procedure.

Advanced Bone & Joint of Missouri offers a complete program for Optimal Weight and Nutrition (OWN). If you are ready to OWN your weight loss and your life, call (636) 229-4222 or request an appointment online. We have offices in St. Peters and O’Fallon, MO.