6 ■ SPRING 1994 ISSUE ■ SINAI HOSPITAL
HealthNews
Arthroscopy Saves
Knees for Serious
Athletes and Weekend
Warriors
Sinai rehabilitation professionals provide therapy, encouragement and compassion.
T
Families
are also
involved in
rehabilitation.
Children,
particularly, are
taught about
living with
disabilities.
Terms
ow
Acute
a condition that appears suddenly, may or may not
be severe and is usually of short duration.
Chronic
a disorder or set of symptoms that lasts for a long
period of time; the opposite of acute.
Musculoskeletal
relating to muscles and/or bones. The muscu-
loskeletal system includes the skeleton and the
hundreds of muscles attached to it.
Where Is Sinai?
he news footage is all
too familiar: A star
athlete goes down clutch-
ing an injured knee. In
the not-so-distant past, a
damaged knee would
have ended a career. But
thanks to an outpatient
procedure called arthro-
scopy, a knee injury may
only be a temporary ob-
stacle for an athlete.
"Sinai is at the fore-
front of arthroscopy," says
Sinai Orthopedic Surgeon
Mark Kamil, M.D., who,
with his father, Richard
Kamil, M.D., developed a
knee cap replacement
that is used universally
now.
Arthroscopy, the most
common form of orthope-
dic surgery, involves the
insertion of an arthro-
scope (a thin, flexible
viewing tube) through a
3-millimeter incision in
the knee. By looking
through the arthroscope,
the surgeon is able to ex-
amine the inside of the
knee. Surgical instru-
ments are inserted
through two other inci-
sions for the surgeon to
repair damaged cartilage
and ligaments. The pro-
cedure is also used to re-
pair or tighten dislocated
shoulders. Because small
incisions are made rather
than large ones, scarring
is minimal. Surgeons
perform arthroscopic
surgery both at Sinai
WEST BLOOMFIELD
Hospital's main campus
in Detroit and its Berry
Surgery Center in Farm-
ington Hills, a facility ded-
icated to outpatient
surgery.
"Arthroscopy has saved
many athletic careers,"
says Dr. Kamil. "Patients
begin physical therapy
soon after surgery and
are back to full activities
in just a few months."
Both male and female
athletes benefit from
arthroscopy. "I see bas-
ketball and volleyball
knee injuries in high
school students weekly,"
notes Dr. Kamil.
According to Dr. Kamil,
treating a knee injury
does not end with arthro-
scopic surgery. "Immedi-
ate, intensive physical
therapy is the key to com-
plete rehabilitation," he
says. "The physical ther-
apist and patient must
work hard to strengthen
the knee and regain full
range of motion.
`The dose relationship
between Sinai's Physical
Medicine and Rehabilita-
tion and Orthopedic
Surgery areas makes for
the best patient care,"
says Dr. Kamil. 'The sur-
geon, physical therapist
and, most importantly,
the patient share a goal —
to get the knee back into
shape to resume normal
activities as quickly as
possible."
Maple Road
BIRMINGHAM
inai Hospital is centrally
Li located in metropolitan
Detroit on West Outer Drive
just north of West McNichols /
Six Mile Road and two blocks
east of Greenfield. The main
entrance is on West Outer
Drive, and valet parking is
available.
ROYAL OAK
FARMINGTON
FERNDALE
Outer Drive
McNichols (Six Mile)
HIGHLAND
PARK
LIVONIA
PE IAL ADVE RTIS EM
Prosthesis
an artificial replacement for a missing body part
such as an arm or leg.
For more information on support groups, clinics and programs, call Sinai Hospital at 1-800-248-3627
tinai