I am a registered nurse and serve as the Orthopedic Patient Navigator at the Sentara OrthoJoint Center at Sentara Leigh Hospital. I am from Virginia and have been employed with Sentara for 35 years.
I look forward to answering your questions.

When you issues such as spinal stenosis which is better and why for surgery, orthopedic or neurosurgeon.

Thanks for your question, Peter. Can I ask what type of treatments you have tried for the pain?

I have been diagnosed with bursitis in my hip where upper leg meets hip. Anytime it get wet or cold weather I suffer with pain. I think it is arthritis not bursitis. There have been no X-rays or testing just based on symptoms. What should i do. What test needs to be done

4 years ago, I broke my ankle and had surgery, ever since it has never been the same walking, I realized during fall and winter this is when I am in so much pain is there something that can be done to help me with the pain.

I broke leg at 2 places and had an external fixator until 2 weeks ago, and now with a walking booot. I can go to the pool, but still can't walk. Can you suggest ways for me to al get into the pool at the gym, knowing that they don't have an handicap ramp and that it would be too sleepery to use my crutches? Thank you very much.

I fell in May and I broke my left arm and the facet joint at L-5 ) disk herniation at L-5 and impinged nerve also I have spondylitis and other issues that showed on the MRI from L-5 through and including S-1. I'm 66 years old and a high risk for surgery. What can be done besides pain management, physical therapy and possibly chiropractic procedure to return me to my normal activities and life?

I am a young adult and my knees really hurt when I walk around the grocery store or a shopping mall. Could this be because I have little cartilage in my knees?

Hello: I am a mid 40's male who fell in July. I fractured my left ankle in three places and my right hip in two places. I had surgery right away to fix these fractures. After 7 weeks I am walking on my ankle with no problems or pain. However, I am at week 10 of my hip surgery and still can only put partial weight on that hip. Is it odd to have to wait so long for my hip to heal but my ankle is fine?

If you need to find an Orthopedic Surgeon our nurse can help you. You can call 855-2ORTHOJT (855-267-8465) or you can log on to our website at Sentara.com/orthojointcenter. We have more information and you can view a patient and physician video about their joint experiences.

My 86 year old mother has severe osteoporosis and has had 2 fractures this year. Is there anything that she can do to prevent bone fractures in the future?

seems like the pain is to my lower left side sort of by waist and a little lower

I currently see a pain management doc and am fighting fibromyalgia and chronic pain with scoliosis. It's like every inch of my body hurts. Is there any hope for me ? :(

Hope all of you are enjoying the web chat. We are here to answer your questions. Keep them coming. There have been many good ones.

I've had two surgeries on my left outer ankle for ruptured tendon. It's never gotten better just worst. It's huge and swollen and very painful to walk. This has been going on for over a year now. It all started out with a lump that would go under my bone when i walked n hurt. So when the surgeon went in to remove the lump which turned out to be a cyst she said she wasn't expecting to see a ruptured tendon. So that was the excuse as to why my ankle was still swollen n painful. So another surgery to clean out the ruptured tendon. She said the synovium was so inflamed it was a deep red. A yr later n my ankle is huge n swollen still. I got a pathology report that said extremely red and inflamed synovium and some other things i dont understand. So do you think i still have tendonitis?

Can it be the diseases themselves causing the tendonitis? Because my other ankle is swollen n painful too,just not as bad as my left.

My son sometimes says he feels "weird" I don't really know what to do he is 11

I have been diagnosed with end stage arthritis of my left ankle. My right ankle is fused. What is your opinion concerning joint fusion vs joint replacement for the left ankle?

Any questions about Hip, Knee or Shoulder Pain?

My fusion is 6 years old and I've had no problems with it. My concern is a decrease in possible ROM and mobility if both ankles are fused. My research tells me replacements last upwards of 6-8 years. Is this true?

I have a bad case of bursitis in my hip that has lasted for months. Is a shot a good idea?

The number of joint replacements is increasing and the age of the patients is changing. We are doing joint replacements on patients in their 40's and patients in their 90's. If your health is good and you want to improve the quality of your life by being able to do things that hip or knee pain is currently keeping you from doing please consider talking with an Orthopedic Surgeon about a joint replacement.

had surgery for scaphnoid lunate disassociation 10yrs ago. increasing pain and trouble using my fingers is causing issues for me as I am a full time gardener. who could tell me if my arthritis in the wrist is causing the issues or carpal tunnel

I had a torn tendon repaired in my hip back in June. I am having stiffness still when I get up after sitting for a bit. It taking a few moments to walk it out. Is this normal?

I have RA and last year I was having problems with my right elbow. I had a doctor to give me a cortisone injection and I have been having problems using it every since. I have taken RA medicines and nothing seems to help. Every once in a while, I have absolutely no pain in the arms as if I was miss diagnosed. I really believe it is somewhat similar to bursitis if not something else.

During crossfit, I slipped from the pull-up bar and fell backwards on the concrete floor. A couple of days later, my back tightened up so I go a massage but that just made ir worse. what could be going on?

Thanks for all the great questions. You guys are great. I hope I can do this again with you.

We just want to thank everyone who participated in our Live Chat. Thanks to WVEC for allowing this opportunity to answer questions for you the viewers. Please
remember we can help you find a physician. You can call 855-2ORTHOJT (855-267-8465) or log on to sentara.com/ORTHOJOINTCENTER.