Detroit evening times. (Detroit, Mich) 1921-1958, 1941-02-09


most excruciating pains-the torture
Of arthritis in the hip Joint of the body.
AS the disease of man which holds the
unenviable title of Greatest Cripper" arthri
It's. of course, attacks many parts of the body.
It stiffens the joints and makes the slightest
movement one of sheer misery. 1t can invade
the muscles and bring pain and soreness 1t
can attack the backbone and cause poker
back" a condition where the spine becomes
rigid and stiff and which has been found in
man and many animals back far the
prehistoric dinosaurs
But of all the ramfiCations of arthrtis
in man few exceed, in sheer pain the misery
of arthritis in the hip joint where the total
weight of the body presses down and grinds
the roughened surface of the femur against
the sensitive socket in the pelvic bone
With a new operation which reams off
the roughness and inserts a transparent plas-
tic cap over the head of the femur. surgeons
are now bringing remarkable relief to patients
who suffer from this kind of arthrits Within
- hours after the operation the leg can
be moved without pain where before even the
motion Of a single toe was torment And in
a few weeks the patient can walk with
orutches and undergoes a rapid and normal
convalescence.
Or Paul H. Harmon of the Robert Packer
Hospital IN Sayrc Pennsylvania is the man
who performs this wonder operation for arthri-
It's Of the hip. The diagrams on this page
show how he accomphshes what people in
earlier time and age might have called
miracle. and some do even IN this age.
The first diagram shows how the large
thigh bone the femur fits into the socket of
the pelvis The femur comes upward toward
the hip and then bends sharply inward to Join
the socket The short. bent portion of the
femur ends in a rounded ball-hke head that
nestles smoothly in the socket where it is
cushioned and fabricated by~tRe tough yet
resilient cartilage
In good health the end Of the femur and
the surface of the socket are smooth The
lee swings easily ard paiuesslv in all dircc-
tons IN a universal Joint type of action
The first diagram also shows conditions
which cause arthrits and excruoating pam
IN The hip Joint. Near The head Of the femur
grow bony outcroppngs called osteophvtcs.
Every time the femur is moved these ostoo-
phvtes strike against The edges of the socket
and bring pain Movement becomes virtually
impossible and the CONT becomes stiff
Furthermore. or the surface of the femur
itself grow bony wrinkles and roughened sur
faces which CRATE and grind in the socket
The cartilage between the femur and the
socket no longer cushions the motion
Or Harmon's operation removes these
bony roughened surfaces and outgrowths
Under a total anesthetc the patient is with
out pain as the surgeon cuts into the hip and
opens up the ball and socket jont BY sheer
strength he dslocates the JOINT and exposes
The head Of the femur 10 view.
The osteophytc hony Erowths are chisclod
away and a special henisphencal reamer is
used 90 CT off all wrinkled surfaces Of the
fsm.H.s fn#H1od head y
~ ga. .ond diagram this roaming stage
# 'hc Co.,. 'Ion is shown Systematically The
fssfuer i- .I to surgical instrument that
#mr' .uraped counterpart Of an old
fa#h.o-r. t4ft enters brace.