Total Joint Arthroplasty in a Pediatric Population

Description

Patients who undergo a total knee arthroplasty (TKA) or total hip arthroplasty(THA) for non-solid tumor related reasons, are most often those children who developed osteonecrosis or avascular necrosis(AVN) as a side effect of their therapy for leukemia. Other patients undergo TKA or THA after degeneration of their joints secondary to trauma, infection, rheumatologic conditions, or congenital deformity. While not all cases of injury to the knee or hip result in the need for a joint replacement, the quality of life is believed to be improved in these children, as having a functioning joint without pain is believed to be better for the patients’ quality of life than ambulating with a painful and/or partially necrotic joint.