Newcastle scientists at the cutting edge in the search for new and better joint replacements
SCIENTISTS at the University of Newcastle are helping to improve the quality of life for the thousands of people who have shoulder replacement surgery in the UK every year, through their cutting-edge research work.
The team, led by Professor Garth Johnson of the Centre for Rehabilitation and Engineering Studies, are studying the problems of arthritic changes in the shoulder, by developing new techniques of measuring movements of the arm and shoulder blade.
Their work was highlighted by leading medical research charity the Arthritis Research Campaign - which is funding the £28,017 research grant over two years - during its Research Week (June 7-13).
The awareness week focused on the enormous success of joint replacement surgery over the past few years, the development of ever-better surgical techniques, and the resulting benefits for patients. It also aimed to restore public confidence in joint replacement, following public concern earlier this year over the failure of one type of hip replacement.
"The shoulder is a complex joint made up of the upper arm, the shoulder blade and the collar bone, which has a very large range of motion," explained Professor Johnson."This is a joint which is frequently affected by arthritis, and new designs of joint replacement are now available.
"In order to study the problems of arthritic changes in the shoulder, it is useful to be able to measure movements of both the arm and the shoulder blade. However, this is particularly difficult because the shoulder blade moves in a complicated manner and all its movement takes place beneath the skin. While x-rays can be used, they do not measure the movements reliably."
The team's research has been concerned with the development of new, biomechanically based techniques to measure these complex movements of the shoulder blade, using a laptop computer and specially developed software.
"The technique has been validated and demonstrated to be reliable," added Professor Johnson. "It has been used to study the changes in movement patterns with age and is now ready for use in the clinical setting, to take measurements of the shoulder movement of people with arthritic and other changes."
