Health Expert Andrew Piasecki, MD shares health management news and commentary at HealthCentral.com. HealthCentral.com is one of the top health destinations on the Web, with more than 35 condition-specific, wellness and general health Web properties. http://www.healthcentral.com/profiles/c/843559/index http://www.healthcentral.com/profiles/c/843559/rss self application/xml en-us 15 120 19 http://www.healthcentral.com/images/hc_logo_sm.gif http://www.healthcentral.com/profiles/c/843559/index http://www.healthcentral.com/osteoarthritis/c/843559/106130/surgery Thu, 18 Mar 2010 13:46:00 -0400 Andrew Piasecki, MD There are both surgical and non-surgical alternatives to ankle replacement surgery. First line treatments for arthritis of the ankle are non-surgical methods. Several of the non-surgical methods provide relief because they limit motion, thus decreasing the irritation of the arthritic joint. One such method is the use of shoe inserts (orthotics), such as pads and arch supports. The use of an ankle brace or a cane can also help to take pressure... http://www.healthcentral.com/osteoarthritis/c/843559/106130/surgery http://www.healthcentral.com/osteoarthritis/c/843559/106129/questions Thu, 11 Mar 2010 13:43:00 -0500 Andrew Piasecki, MD The main advantage of ankle replacement surgery is to relieve ankle arthritis pain and to preserve motion in the ankle joint. The alternative to ankle replacement surgery is ankle fusion. Ankle fusion is a more traditional surgery for ankle arthritis; in this procedure the cartilage is shaved off the bones of the ankle joint, which are then allowed to heal together. This eliminates the painful arthritic surfaces from rubbing on each other,... http://www.healthcentral.com/osteoarthritis/c/843559/106129/questions http://www.healthcentral.com/osteoarthritis/c/843559/105556/surgery Fri, 05 Mar 2010 11:31:00 -0500 Andrew Piasecki, MD Ankle replacement is designed to treat arthritis of the ankle. This type of arthritis is most commonly caused by osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis or post-traumatic arthritis. Osteoarthritis is "wear and tear" of the cartilage in a joint. Rheumatoid arthritis is caused by a system-wide disease process, which affects the entire body. Osteoarthritis can affect isolated joints whereas rheumatoid arthritis usually affects multiple joints.... http://www.healthcentral.com/osteoarthritis/c/843559/105556/surgery