Orthopedics & Rehabilitation (see more articles like this)

Linda Moore, 40, dreads meeting new people. Not because she is shy, but because she is physically unable to shake a person’s hand…or grasp a cup… or do much of anything due to her crippling battle with rheumatoid arthritis in every one of her finger joints.

But now, Moore will regain movement in her fingers thanks to a breakthrough joint implant surgery performed at the Florida Hospital Orthopaedic Institute – the only center in Central Florida offering this procedure.

The new Pyrocarbon Total Joint Prosthesis procedure uses implants made of pure carbon – the same material used to make a diamond - to replace the stiffened joints in the fingers. While previous finger joint replacement surgeries have provided pain relief to patients, the pyrocarbon procedure also restores joint function, which has not been available until now. Other benefits of this procedure include less bone removal, soft tissue structure preservation, and bone alignment restoration.