Tad Gerlinger

The military has changed the requirement for a disability board and possible medical discharge for a well functioning total joint replacement, service members receiving a total joint arthroplasty are now assumed fit for duty with minor modifications to their activity.

With multiple deployments, Kosovo, Afghanistan, and Iraq, I am aware of the demands placed on our service members in the combat zone.

I also spent 5 years on airborne status, serving as the surgeon for service members in some of our most elite military units, so I have seen firsthand the intensity of their training.

Patients are less tolerant of activity restrictions now than they ever were, and so younger and younger patients are seeking out a solution to their problem of chronic knee or hip pain.