Ankle Replacements Take Off as Devices Appear Durable (WSJ)
Ankle replacements, a new kid on the block compared with knee and hip replacements, used to be deemed a risky bet for patients under 65.
But as doctors steadily gain confidence that the replacements will last, Carrie Kvitko, 60, from Columbus, Ohio, is one of a growing group of younger patients to sport a new ankle, made of metal and plastic and bending nearly as well as the original. In September, a year after her surgery, Mrs. Kvitko went on vacation to Magic Kingdom Park in Orlando and climbed 116 steps to the top of the Swiss Family Tree House.
“I’m young,” she says. “I want to be able to do things. I don’t want to give that up.”
Fast Growth
Nearly 10,000 total-ankle-replacements will take place this year in the U.S., about double the level in 2011, according to estimates from SmartTRAK, an online market-data system from BioMedGPS LLC of Irvine, Calif.
That growth is due in part to mounting evidence over the past several years that a particular device is long-lasting. Most recently, at a scientific meeting in September in Lisbon, Duke University researcher James A. Nunley presented data on Stryker Corp.’s Star ankle. ...
