Interesting Hospital Study

Rush University Medical Center doctors have been routinely asking patients for years if they can get their artifical joints when they are "done" with them (i.e die). The head of the program said the purpose of the study was to improve the performance of the artifical joints for their patients. By studying them after the face, they can attempt to deal with problems that will come up and hopefully correct for future patients. One estimate lists approximately 400,000 Americans undergoing procedures for artifical joints last year.

Rush officials are happy with the program so far. 189 artifical joints have been retrieved from 119 patients after they have passed away. Over 700 more have signed up for the program. Joints that are replaced while a patient is still living can be studied, but doctors can get better information when the joins are studied post-mortem. This study is part of a bigger study by the National Institutes of Health, which helps Rush with their funding in addition to private funding of the study.