Elbow replacements are effective for the rheumatic elbow joint.

2004 FEB 9 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Total elbow arthroplasty is successful at 12-year follow-up, researchers report.

"Management of patients with rheumatoid arthritis of the elbow has changed significantly over the last several years. From a medical standpoint, the disease-modifying agents have decreased the number of patients requiring a synovectomy," scientists in the United States report.

"When synovectomy is indicated, arthroscopic synovectomy has lessened the morbidity of this procedure, but the long-term effectiveness as a definitive reconstructive procedure has yet to be determined," wrote B.F. Morrey and colleagues, Mayo Clinic.

"Both …