Clinical Research & Education
Research is a key element of the Institute's goal to increase the quality
of care of joint replacement patients. Using research, the Institute's
physicians study how to improve the surgery process itself with the least
possible invasive surgical approach, to examine which types of implants
produce the best results, and to evaluate best practices for rehabilitation
to decrease the patient's time in the hospital and in outpatient rehabilitation.
The medical treatment provided by the Institute for Joint Restoration and
Research has always been grounded in evidence-based practices published
in medical literature. However, because the program developed its own
innovative surgical and therapeutic approaches, the staff now draws heavily
on the joint registry, a computerized database used within the Institute.
Several departments contribute critical information into this joint registry
and the data is updated continually. The analysis of the outcomes from
various therapeutic approaches directly informs and guides patient care
on a daily basis.
The Institute’s extensive clinical research program monitors the
results of less invasive surgical techniques, evaluates various blood-conservation
methodologies to minimize the use of blood transfusion, and assesses the
outcomes associated with new implants that preserve bone and are gender specific.
Dr. Dearborn and Dr. Sah are active in the design of new joint replacement
implants, with the intent of extending their longevity. Both physicians
and their Institute teams use the joint registry to monitor the function
of thousands of implants to identify optimal materials, designs, and techniques.
Registry data is extracted regularly for Dr. Sah’s presentations
at regional, national and international meetings.
During the next ten years, as the influence of the Institute for Joint
Restoration and Research grows, the clinical database will serve as the
foundation of an enhanced research program. Coupled with increased teaching
and the current, outstanding surgical program, a robust research program
will transform the Institute into an internationally known orthopaedic
institute, advancing knowledge in joint replacement, training surgeons
in minimally-invasive techniques, and offering the best hip and knee replacement
surgery to patients from all over the world.
Research Activities
- 90-Day Morbidity and Mortality in Primary Total Hip Replacement and Total
Knee Replacement
- Blood Management Techniques in Hip and Knee Replacement
- Prospective Post Market Clinical Follow-Up Study of the Continuum™
Metal on Polyethylene Acetabular System
- Deep Vein Thrombosis Prophylaxis After Hip and Knee Replacement
- Comparison of Proximal Press-Fit Femoral Stems in Total Hip Replacement
- Early Closed Knee Manipulation for Arthofibrosis After Primary Total Knee
Arthroplasty
- Prospective Evaluation of Primary Total Hip Arthroplasty With and Without
Use of a Thrombis Hemostatic Matrix
- Knee Implant Size Differences in Patients Undergoing Simultaneous Bilateral TKA