Dear Mudlark,

Gargoyle makes a number of good points here.

The technologies in this sector (I work in medical technology though not with orthopaedics) are moving very fast and there are a number of new high-tech products beginning to appear. In general, minimally invasive surgery hugely improves recovery and rehab time but there are some important questions to ask

- is the replacement proven technology or is it new technology?
- what is the track record of the device being implanted?
- what is the success rate with the minimally-invasive technique?

Any good surgeon should be more than happy to discuss this with you.

Peace

moo